May People Notes

Elizabeth Ammons, the Harriet H. Fay Professor of Literature in the English department, edited the new Penguin paperback edition of Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome.

Jeffrey Berry, professor of political science, and Klaus Miczek, professor of psychology, are this year’s recipients of the Faculty Research Awards Committee’s Distinguished Scholar Awards, given in recognition of their excellence in research and scholarship. They will receive the awards at the final Arts & Sciences faculty meeting of the year in May.

Dr. Diana W. Bianchi, the Natalie V. Zucker Professor of Pediatrics, has been elected president of the International Society of Prenatal Diagnosis, an organization that includes obstetricians, medical geneticists, pediatricians and clinical laboratory personnel from 46 countries who perform prenatal diagnosis or do research in this area. Her four-year term begins in September, following the society’s scientific meeting in Kyoto.

Jay Cantor, professor of English, has just signed a contract to have the Death of Che Guevara published in Chinese by Shangai Sanhui Culture and Press Ltd. The book also has appeared in Portuguese and Spanish and is available in English from Vintage.

Lucy Der Manuelian, the Arthur H. Dadian and Ara Oztemel Professor of Armenian Art and Architectural History, organized two archaeological expeditions in Armenia using a ground-penetrating radar system developed by Geophysical Survey Systems to conduct a survey of 12 early Christian and medieval sites and two newly discovered Urartian fortresses. The technology can detect remains of walls, chambers and fragments beneath the ground surface. While in Armenia, she lectured at the American University of Armenia, the Eurasian Foundation, the American Embassy and the Peace Corps. She and archaeologist Daniel Welch, a specialist in the technology she brought to Armenia, presented the radar system and their findings to the Academy of Sciences of Armenia. Der Manuelian also has been awarded a $50,000 grant to restore and repair medieval Armenian churches. She presented a paper, “Architects, Craftsmen and Weavers: The Role of Armenians in Ottoman Art,” at the 15th symposium of the International Committee on Pre-Ottoman and Ottoman Studies in London. She also presented a lecture at the Armenian Cultural Foundation in Boston on “Armenian Manuscripts, Monasteries and Miracles of the Middle Ages.” Der Manuelian received the Outstanding Alumna Award from the Girls’ Latin School-Boston Latin Academy.

Lee Edelman, Fletcher Professor of English Literature and chair of the English department, was jointly sponsored by the Research Cluster on Psychoanalysis and the Research Cluster on Queer Theory in March, when he presented a public lecture and held a seminar at the University of California at Santa Cruz. His lecture, “Bad Education: Learning Nothing from Queers,” presented material from his latest book-in-progress, while the seminar focused on the political ramifications of his recent book, No Future: Queer Theory and the Death Drive. He was invited to deliver two more lectures on these materials in Helsinki, Finland, at the end of April, sponsored by the University of Helsinki, the School of Art and Design, the Christina Institute for Women’s Studies and the Helsinki Collegium for Advanced Studies.

Ioannis D. Evrigenis, assistant professor of political science, delivered a lecture, “ ‘Carthage Must Be Saved’: Fear of Enemies and Collective Action” at Grinnell College on April 6.

Dr. David Fairchild, associate professor of medicine and chief of general medicine at Tufts-New England Medical Center; Dr. Richard Dupee, associate clinical professor of medicine and chief of geriatrics at Tufts-NEMC; and Dr. Lyle Bohlman, assistant clinical professor of public health and family medicine, traveled to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, in March to lecture on geriatrics. The trip was a result of a visit to Tufts several months earlier by Dr. Hisham Sallout, chief of health care professional education at Dhahran Health Center. He met with Dr. Adel Abu-Moustafa, dean of international affairs at the School of Medicine, to invite Tufts faculty to visit Saudi Arabia as part of that hospital’s ongoing continuing education program. Although there had been a long history of educational changes between the Dhahran Health Center and the School of Medicine, academic exchange between the two institutions essentially dried up following the 9/11 tragedy. Spanning three days, the Tufts-led seminar, “The Geriatric Imperative,” reviewed all aspects of clinical geriatrics. In addition to traditional lectures, Dupee, Bohlman and Fairchild brought dozens of cases for discussion.

Judith Haber, associate professor of English delivered a paper, “ ‘Old Men’s Tales’: Legacies of the Father in ’Tis Pity She’s a Whore,” at the annual meeting of the Renaissance Society of America in San Francisco March 23-25. She participated in a seminar titled “’Tis Pity It’s Not Shakespeare: Rethinking John Ford” at the annual meeting of the Shakespeare Association of America April 13-15 in Philadelphia. She was an invited participant in the fourth annual meeting of the Northeast Seminar in Early Modern Studies at Dartmouth College on April 22.

Justin Ko, a second-year student at the School of Medicine, has been honored by the American Medical Association Foundation as an emerging leader in medicine. The AMA Leadership Awards program provides medical students, residents, fellows, young physicians and international medical graduate physicians from around the country special training to develop their skills as future leaders in organized medicine. Fifty-five individuals received the award March 12 in Washington, D.C.

Leslie Lawrence, lecturer in English, attended the Associated Writing Programs conference. Her essay, “On the Mowing,” originally published in Fourth Genre, a journal of creative nonfiction, has been reprinted in Five Years of Fourth Genre, an anthology of selected essays. “Miller’s Bite,” a chapter from her unpublished novel, is forthcoming in The Marlboro Review. She recently received word that her essay, “The Death of Fred Astaire,” is being read by writing students in Turkey.

Alice H. Lichtenstein, the Stanley N. Gershoff Professor of Nutrition Science and Policy, is the 2006 recipient of the Robert H. Herman Memorial Award, given to a clinical investigator whose research has contributed to the advancement of clinical nutrition. She received the award from the American Society of Clinical Nutrition at the 2006 Experimental Biology Meeting in April in San Francisco. Lichtenstein directs the Cardiovascular Nutrition Laboratory at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging and is the author of more than 150 papers published in leading scientific and medical journals. She served on the 2000 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee and the Institute of Medicine’s Dietary Reference Intakes Macronutrient Panel and is currently chair of the American Heart Association’s Nutrition Committee.

Dr. Kenneth Malament, clinical professor of prosthodontics and operative dentistry at the School of Dental Medicine, was awarded the American Academy of Fixed Denture Prosthodontics’ 2006 George Moulton Award for Outstanding Achievement at the organization’s meeting in Chicago in February. He presented a lecture on “Integration of Esthetic Dentistry and Simple and Complex Modern Prosthodontics” to the New York University College of Dentistry, the New York Academy of Dentistry, at the 2006 Yankee Dental Congress in Boston, at the 2006 Southwest Dental Institute in Oklahoma City, to the Chicago Dental Society, at the 2006 Valley Forge Dental Conference and at the 2006 Francis B. Vedder Society for Crown and Bridge Prosthodontics in Ann Arbor, Mich.

Dr. Simin Meydani, associate director of the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging (HNRCA) and director of its Nutritional Immunology Laboratory, was invited to discuss “Age-associated Immune and Inflammatory Changes” February 13 during Clinical Nutrition Week 2006 in Dallas, Texas.

Jayanthi Mistry, associate professor of child development, and Jana Chaudhuri, a graduate student in child development, participated in a panel discussion on “Navigating Multiple Worlds of Parenting: Transformations of Indianness” at the fourth annual Association for Research on Asian-Indian Communities Conference, “Investigating Indianness: Transformations of Identity in Global and Local Cultures,” April 29 at Connecticut College.

Jocelyn Muller, a doctoral student in biology, presented a paper, “From Anza to Zinsan: Concepts of ‘Famine Foods’ in Niger,” at the international conference of the Society for Applied Anthropology in Vancouver, Canada, on March 31. The paper is a part of her dissertation work in biology and was sponsored by the Garden Club of America’s Anne S. Chatham Fellowship, the Tufts Institute for the Environment and the Luce Program.

Dr. Robert Nicholson, V95, has been appointed a clinical assistant professor of environmental and population health at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. He had worked in a small animal and exotic practice in Natick, Mass.

Dan Richards, professor of economics, presented a paper on “The Efficiencies Defense in Mergers: The Baby-Food Case Reconsidered,” which he co-authored with Richard Dagen of the Federal Trade Commission, at the fourth annual International Industrial Organization Conference in Boston April 7-9.

Dr. Irwin H. Rosenberg, University Professor and the Jean Mayer Professor of Nutrition at the Friedman School, is the 2006 recipient of the Conrad Elvehjem Award for Public Service in Nutrition, which recognizes distinguished service to the public through nutrition science. He received the award from the American Society of Clinical Nutrition in April at the 2006 Experimental Biology Meeting in San Francisco. Throughout his career, Rosenberg has participated in many national and international nutrition policy efforts and has held positions on committees for the Food and Drug Administration and the Institute of Medicine. Since joining Tufts, Rosenberg has served as dean of the Friedman School for nine years and director of the HNRCA for 15 years. Currently, Rosenberg directs the Nutrition and Neurocognition Laboratory at the HNRCA.

Sharan L. Schwartzberg, professor and chair of the Department of Occupational Therapy, presented a keynote lecture, “Theory and Skills for Occupational Therapy Group Work,” at Massachusetts General Hospital on April 20 in celebration of Occupational Therapy Month. On April 28, she received the American Occupational Therapy Association Recognition of Achievement Award for her innovation and excellence in occupational therapy group work. The award was presented at the association’s national conference in Charlotte.

Bob Sheldon, who directed the 2005-06 men’s basketball team to a school-record 23 wins and to the first NCAA Tournament “Sweet 16” berth in team history, has been selected as the D3Hoops.com Northeast Region Coach of the Year. With their 23-7 finish, the Jumbos surpassed the 22-4 record of the 1972-73 team for the most victories in a season during the 102-year history of Tufts basketball. Magnifying the accomplishment is that just two seasons ago in 2003-04, Sheldon’s Jumbos finished 8-17 for the worst record at Tufts since the 1970-71 squad went 1-17. Sheldon has coached the Jumbos for 18 seasons and is the program’s all-time leader in victories with a 273-180 record.

Enrico Spolaore, professor of economics, gave a lecture and a research seminar at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, on March 30 and 31. The lecture, “Size of Nations,” was given to undergraduates, while the research seminar, “Diffusion of Development,” was presented to BYU economics faculty.

John Straub, lecturer in economics, presented a paper, “Competition in Religious Markets,” which he co-authored with Lynne Pepall, professor of economics; Dan Richards, professor of economics; and Michael DeBartolo, A06, at the fourth annual International Industrial Organization Conference in Boston April 7-9. At the conference, Pepall presented the paper “Advertising: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly,” which she co-authored with Richards and Liang Tan, G06.

Ayron Strauch, a doctoral student in biology and a student in the Water: Systems, Science and Society graduate program, gave a presentation on “The Impact of Herding on Aquatic Ecosystems in Hwange, Zimbabwe,” at the annual meeting of the Society for Applied Anthropology, March 28 to April 2 in Vancouver, British Columbia. Strauch conducted the research last in conjunction with Alana Kapust, V08. Their mentors were Dr. Christine Jost, assistant professor of environmental and population health at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine; Astier Almedom, the Luce Professor of Science and Humanitarianism; and Richard Vogel, professor of civil and environmental engineering.

Jan Swafford, lecturer in English, has been writing program notes and giving pre-concert lectures for the Boston Symphony this season for works including Beethoven’s “Ninth Symphony” and “Missa Solemnis” and the “Berlioz Requiem.” He is writing the program book for the Garrick Ohlsson performances of the complete Beethoven piano sonatas this summer at Tanglewood. Recently, he has done music features for NPR’s weekend edition of “All Things Considered.”

Grace Talusan, lecturer in English, had her nonfiction piece “Snapshots” selected for the Boston City Hall Prose and Poetry Program, and it will be displayed on floor 2A.

Chih Ming Tan, assistant professor of economics, gave a seminar at the University of Connecticut on March 24 titled “God Is in the Details: A Reexamination of the Role of Religion in Economic Growth.” The seminar was based on joint work with Prof. Steven Durlauf of the University of Wisconsin and Prof. Andros Kourtellos of the University of Cyprus.

Paul J. Tringale, A82, F01, director of conferences and summer programs, co-chaired the Global Study Tour of the International Association of Conference Centers (IACC). He led a group of 24 conference center professionals from Denmark, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom on a visit to five conference centers in New England. The group met with general managers, sales and operations staff as well as the executive chef at each location to learn about best practices, conference services and trends in the industry. Following the Global Study Tour, the group attended the annual conference in Colorado. Tufts is a founding member of IACC, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.

Dr. Saul Tzipori, professor of biomedical sciences at the Cummings School, has been selected as the Talloires Scholar-in-Residence this year. He will spend the month of June at the Tufts European Center in Talloires, France, giving several presentations on science and society, current trends in serious diseases such as HIV/AIDS, zoonotic diseases from an evolutionary perspective and the future of biomedical research in the age of genomics.

Paul Waldau, assistant professor of environmental and population health at the Cummings School, has served as co-chair of the American Academy of Religion’s program unit on animals and religion. The organization’s annual meeting is the largest gathering of religion scholars in the world. The program units bring together scholars with related research and teaching interests to share the results of their work. As chair of a program unit, Waldau supervised the work of a steering committee in developing and monitoring the ongoing work of the unit, issued a call for papers, received the proposals, coordinated their refereeing and selection and organized sessions for the annual meeting.