Obama election creates opportunities, say leaders
Labor and environmental leaders, meeting Nov. 25 at Cornell's Global Labor Institute in Manhattan, agreed that the potential to ally the environmental and labor communities has never been stronger. (Nov. 26, 2008)

Astrophysicist Salpeter dies at 83
Edwin Salpeter, whose theories revolutionized astrophysics, died at his home in Ithaca Nov. 26. He was 83. (Nov. 26, 2008)

Cornellians videoconference with Indian students
As part of International Education Week, four Cornellians shared time with several dozen prospective Cornell students in Kolkata, India, Nov. 20 via a videoconference in Weill Hall. (Nov. 25, 2008)

Scholar: Egyptians' African roots are overlooked
Mario Beatty, a renowned Egyptologist, told a Cornell audience Nov. 24 that Egypt's sub-Saharan roots have been largely overlooked until recently. (Nov. 25, 2008)

Zalaznick Teaching Assistantships awarded
Thirteen Cornell professors recently received awards from the Louis H. Zalaznick Teaching Assistantship program, administered by Entrepreneurship@Cornell, for assistants to help with their courses. (Nov. 25, 2008)

Amy Dickinson kicks off campaign
The Family and Children's Service kicked off its $2.5 million 'Opening New Doors' campaign Nov. 23 at its new location, 127 W. State St. Cornell is a lead contributor. (Nov. 25, 2008)

New route to self-assembling, low-cost solar cells
A new method uses polymer chemistry to 'self-assemble' a dye-based photovoltaic cell. (Nov. 24, 2008)

'Tis the season ... to beware of lead in Christmas lights
A study of Christmas lights finds they contain more lead than is allowed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Housing and Urban Development for windowsills or floors. (Nov. 24, 2008)

Things to Do: Week of Nov. 21
Editors' picks for events the week of Nov. 21 include Zen meditation, films for children, a calligraphy exhibition and a lecture on the precarious state of the honeybee. (Nov. 21, 2008)

Higher education: Special interest or national asset?
In a commentary published in the Chronicle of Higher Education, President David Skorton calls on the higher education community to help the country solves its most pressing challenges. (Nov. 21, 2008)

Chance to switch benefits programs offered until Nov. 26
Application support analyst Alan Rose has benefited from his enrollment in the Cornell Program for Healthy Living, saying it motivated him to change his diet and get more exercise. (Nov. 21, 2008)

Got ideas on reducing Cornell's carbon footprint?
The Climate Action Plan Idea Exchange Web site is soliciting ideas until Dec. 1 on how to reduce the university's carbon emissions. (Nov. 20, 2008)

What's in Skorton's suggestion box?
More than 200 people have offered Cornell President David Skorton ideas on how Cornell could cut costs. The Campus Savings and Efficiencies Committee is assessing the suggestions. (Nov. 20, 2008)

Hunter Rawlings gives hypothetical 'Last Lecture'
In his talk in the Last Lecture series, Hunter Rawlings, Cornell president emeritus and professor of classics, focused on the importance of being a 'close reader' - an integral part, he said, of becoming a scholar. (Nov. 19, 2008)

ChemE Car places first at national competition
The Cornell ChemE Car Team placed first at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers student-car competition in Philadelphia Nov. 16, beating out more than 30 other student teams. (Nov. 19, 2008)

Facebook, texting resemble face-to-face interaction
Two studies show that what works in face-to-face communication can also work in the cyber world. (Nov. 19, 2008)

Men help stop domestic violence
An ILR School program called 'Stand Up Guys' focuses on how men can help stop domestic violence against women. (Nov. 19, 2008)

Law professor Michael Dorf covers law and more in blog
Michael Dorf's blog features 'mostly law-related musings.' (Nov. 19, 2008)

Vitamin B1 biosynthesis: Think Rubik's cube
Cornell scientists have characterized a key enzyme's structure to better understand its activity in vitamin B1 synthesis. The enzyme performs a complex series of 15 to 20 steps. (Nov. 19, 2008)

Agribusiness Economic Outlook Conference is Dec. 9
Hosted by the Department of Applied Economics and Management, the annual conference takes a look at next year's financial prospects for agriculture and agricultural products. (Nov. 19, 2008)

Soil study suggests future climate change models should be revised
A detailed analysis of black carbon - the residue of burned organic matter - in computer climate models suggests that those models may be overestimating climate change predictions. (Nov. 18, 2008)

Student stages historically faithful 'Don Giovanni'
Junior Dorian Bandy, a College Scholar in the College of Arts and Sciences, recruited performers and supporters on campus and from across America and Europe to stage a historical version of 'Don Giovanni' Nov. 14-16. (Nov. 18, 2008)

MBA students manage $14 million Cayuga Fund
Between 40 and 50 investors have $14 million invested in the Cayuga Fund, a market-neutral equity hedge fund managed by second-year Johnson School MBA students. (Nov. 18, 2008)

Online receipt idea wins Elevator Pitch Contest
A business idea that would allow people to manage their receipts online was the top winner in the Oct. 29 Cornell Entrepreneur Organization's Elevator Pitch Contest. (Nov. 18, 2008)

New TV show features New York agriculture
A new television program, 'From Farm to Table,' which airs in the Albany area but is also available online, can help consumers take full advantage of the culinary bounty of the region and eat more healthfully. (Nov. 18, 2008)

New videos offer safety tips to Cornell freshmen
The videos cover such issues as personal safety, mental health, the dangers of Ithaca's gorges and the illegality of some music and video downloading. (Nov. 18, 2008)

Big Red pride pumps up parade in the Big Apple
On Nov. 15, N.Y. Gov. David A. Paterson led the biennial Seymour 'Sy' Katz '31 Parade in midtown Manhattan. The parade is considered New York City's longest-running, shortest parade. (Nov. 18, 2008)

What to do with space waste 100 million miles away
Jean Hunter, associate professor of agricultural and biological engineering, has devised a way to deal with rotten, smelly garbage in the one place where you can't throw out the trash - space. (Nov. 17, 2008)

Things to Do: Week of Nov. 14
Editors' picks for events the week of Nov. 14 include Shakespeare, Anne Frank, Asian films and Cornell's international celebration of Thanksgiving. (Nov. 13, 2008)

Internal hiring program protects current workers
Staff members across campus are taking to heart President Skorton's recent directive: Protect the university's human capital. In a new initiative, employees now have special access to open jobs at Cornell. (Nov. 13, 2008)

Cornell enhances financial aid for undergraduates
The university will further bolster its financial aid program for undergraduates by eliminating parental contribution for family incomes below $60,000, and further reducing student loans. (Nov. 13, 2008)

Ober named interim dean of engineering
Christopher Ober, professor of materials science and engineering, will begin serving as interim dean of the College of Engineering when current dean Kent Fuchs becomes Cornell provost Jan. 1. (Nov. 13, 2008)

Program mobilizes retirees as environmental stewards
In the pilot program, two Cornell researchers are training an environmental volunteer corps of retirees with the skills critically needed to tackle environmental threats. (Nov. 13, 2008)

Serial cohabitors are less likely to marry
Women who have cohabited more than once are less likely to marry - and much more likely to divorce - than women who have lived with only one partner, finds a new study. (Nov. 13, 2008)

'Explosive' challenges face Obama, says LaFeber
At the Cornell Retirees Association fall luncheon, Walter LaFeber provides a sobering assessment of the international challenges ahead for President-elect Barack Obama. (Nov. 13, 2008)

Election season has inspired young women to run for office
The 2008 presidential election may well prove to be the tipping point for women in presidential politics - that was the consensus of participants in an alumni program held in Washington, D.C., Oct. 30. (Nov. 13, 2008)

Emergency notification systems pass test Nov. 12
'All units worked as expected,' said Richard McDaniel, vice president for risk management and public safety. 'We will review these test results over the coming days and continue to try to improve the systems.' (Nov. 12, 2008)

Skorton travels to Iran with U.S. delegation
President David Skorton travels to Tehran Nov. 14 with a group of U.S. university presidents working to strengthen educational ties between the U.S. and Iran. (Nov. 12, 2008)

LEED is new building standard, say developers
About a year and a half ago, the market began demanding more green buildings, said a private developer in a panel discussion on the intersection of development and sustainability Nov. 7 at Cornell Law School. (Nov. 12, 2008)

Africana Center hosts James Baldwin symposium
Five diverse scholars weighed in on the life, work and legacy of writer James Baldwin at a symposium Nov. 8 at Cornell's Africana Studies and Research Center. (Nov. 12, 2008)

Winter session course explores Rastafarian imagery
Art, Caribbean culture, history and spirituality will combine in Jamaican art historian Petrine Archer-Straw's winter session distance course, Rastafari, Race and Resistance. (Nov. 12, 2008)

It's never too early to plan for winter's surprises
Cornell administrators advise supervisors and employees to review the university's Inclement Weather Policy. (Nov. 12, 2008)

Bartels family celebrates Cornell Building Care staff
Five Building Care custodians received the Bartels Award for Custodial Service Excellence for their strong customer service orientation, reliability, team-building skills and positive attitude. (Nov. 12, 2008)

Recognizing Cornell's veterans: Past and present
Cornell observed Veterans Day at the West Campus War Memorial, Nov. 11, with a presentation by retired U.S. Navy Capt. James Nault. (Nov. 11, 2008)

Allergies may help prevent cancers, study finds
Sneezing, coughing, tearing and itching just may help prevent cancer - particularly colon, skin, bladder, mouth, throat, uterus and cervix, lung and gastrointestinal tract cancer, according to a new Cornell study. (Nov. 11, 2008)

Cornell researchers link autism and rain
Cornell researchers find that autism rates are higher in those counties with higher rainfall in Washington, Oregon and California than in drier parts of the states. (Nov. 11, 2008)

Annual trip takes busload of students to U.N.
For the fifth year, almost 100 Cornellians spent a day at the United Nations, hearing from a panel of officials about the U.N.'s work. (Nov. 11, 2008)

Forum examines humanities publishing in the digital age
Scholars, librarians, publishers and foundation officers discussed the future of scholarly exchange in the humanities at a forum on academic publishing Nov. 7-8 in A.D. White House. (Nov. 11, 2008)

Keeping Ithaca gorges
On Nov. 8, two fraternities, Plantations Natural Areas Program, Cornell Outdoor Education, and Fraternity and Sorority Affairs partnered to haul trash out of Cascadilla Gorge. (Nov. 10, 2008)

Financial engineering students spend semester in N.Y.
Master of financial engineering students are putting theory into practice during their third and final semester of coursework at Cornell Financial Engineering Manhattan. (Nov. 10, 2008)

Einaudi Center funds four faculty grant proposals
Proposal topics include WTO disciplines and biofuels; the process of social displacement and militarization; and the world food crisis as a lens on global development. (Nov. 10, 2008)

Crop Science Society of America honors CU faculty
Soil scientists Jerome H. Cherney, William J. Cox and Peter R. Hobbs have received awards from the American Society of Agronomy-Crop Science Society of America. (Nov. 10, 2008)

Edward Mabaya wins 'best paper' award
Edward Mabaya, senior research associate in Applied Economics and Management, was awarded 'Best Paper' at the recent meeting of Agricultural Economics Association of South Africa in Namibia. (Nov. 10, 2008)

Observing catalysis, one molecule at a time
Cornell researchers have developed an ingenious microscopic method to observe the behavior of single nanoparticles of a catalyst, down to the resolution of single catalytic events. (Nov. 10, 2008)

Skorton holds second forum on cost-saving measures
People's jobs are 'the first thing on my mind when I get up in the morning, and the last thing on my mind when I go to bed at night,' President David Skorton said at the Nov. 6 forum. (Nov. 7, 2008)

Einaudi Center announces International Week events
International Education Week, Nov. 17-21, is part of an annual worldwide event in which educational institutions and embassies share culture and promote international exchange. (Nov. 7, 2008)

Things to Do: Week of Nov. 7
Editors' picks for events the week of Nov. 7 (Nov. 7, 2008)

Open enrollment for benefits is Nov. 10-26
The yearly open enrollment period for benefits runs Nov. 10-26. The only significant change this year is in the vendor Cornell is using for behavioral health care coverage. (Nov. 7, 2008)

2,600 attend Employee Celebration Day Nov. 1
Over 2,600 faculty, staff, retirees and their families attended the Nov. 1 Employee Celebration Day, where more than 150 people volunteered on the day or in planning. (Nov. 7, 2008)

The Chronicle sits down with Alice Pell
Alice Pell, Cornell professor of animal science in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, took over as vice provost for international relations July 1. Here Pell discusses some of the duties of her office. (Nov. 7, 2008)

Following the leader can be a drag, research shows
Graduate student Leif Ristroph found that two or more flexible objects in a flow - flags flapping in the wind, for example - experience drag very differently from rigid objects in a similar flow. (Nov. 6, 2008)

Researcher finds changing North Atlantic climate
As a result of global warming, which has caused Arctic freshwater ice to melt and flow southward, the ranges of some cold water, northern marine species have been moving down the North American coast. (Nov. 6, 2008)

Professors predict the course of Obama's administration
Taking part in a panel discussion held Nov. 5, Joel Silbey, Elizabeth Sanders, Richard Booth and Ted Lowi agreed on the day after the election that Barack Obama's reform agenda faces daunting challenges. (Nov. 6, 2008)

Architects present visionary ideas at symposium
Prominent architects discussed their projects during a recent 'Architecture of Disbelief' symposium held Oct. 30-Nov. 1 at Cornell. (Nov. 6, 2008)

Welcome to Chaos: Strogatz course featured on DVD
A new course on DVD featuring mathematician Steve Strogatz covers the science and math behind chaos theory, plus the historical, cultural and philosophical implications of the concept. (Nov. 6, 2008)

Skorton holds forum on cost-saving measures
Speaking at the first of two public forums about the university's possible cost-saving measures, President David Skorton pledged to protect the university's 'human capital.' The second forum will be held Nov. 6. (Nov. 6, 2008)

Researchers develop ultrafast oscilloscope
Cornell researchers have created an ultrafast oscilloscope that can plot the waveform of an optical signal with a resolution of less than a trillionth of a second. (Nov. 5, 2008)

Study focuses on violence in nursing homes
Cornell has been awarded a four-year $2.5 million grant from the National Institute on Aging to conduct the first large-scale study of verbal and physical aggression among nursing home residents. (Nov. 5, 2008)

Hip-hop pioneers discuss early years
Scholars and pioneering hip-hop artists including Afrika Bambaataa gathered at a conference to celebrate the Cornell Library collection 'Born in the Bronx,' an archive of hip-hop's evolution. (Nov. 5, 2008)

Emergency notification system to be tested Nov. 12
Cornell's emergency notifications systems, including the sirens/public address system, will be tested Nov. 12, beginning at 12:10 p.m. (Nov. 5, 2008)

Birdsall speaks on global development agenda for U.S.
The U.S. and the next president 'desperately need' fresh policies regarding developing countries, argued Nancy Birdsall, president of the Center for Global Development on Nov. 3 during her foreign policy lecture. (Nov. 5, 2008)

Seminar on inequality focuses on developing world
Cornell professor Christopher Barrett describes the problems and possible solutions to persistent poverty in developing countries. (Nov. 5, 2008)

Hockett: History is key in solving financial crisis
Cornell law professor Robert Hockett offers his solution for the mortgage crisis and the financial crisis, involving the Federal Housing Administration. (Nov. 5, 2008)

MFA grad Manuel Muñoz receives $50,000 writing prize
Fiction writer Manuel Muñoz, MFA '98, has received a Whiting Writers' Award worth $50,000. The awards were presented Oct. 29 in New York City. (Nov. 4, 2008)

Maple expert campaigns to boost state's syrup production
A Cornell researcher is trying to promote greater maple production in the Northeast; in New York, for example, less than 1 percent of the tappable trees are being used for maple syrup production. (Nov. 4, 2008)

Students take honors in programming contests
A Cornell team finished second in the 2008 Association for Computing Machinery Regional Programming Contest, and one student on that team also has advanced to the finals of the Google Code Jam. (Nov. 4, 2008)

Climbing competition benefits low-income youths
The Cornell Outdoor Education's Intercollegiate Rock Climbing Competition Nov. 2 raised $650 to benefit the local nonprofit OURS & YOURS Youth Organization, founded in 2005 by a Cornell student. (Nov. 4, 2008)

NYS Assembly honors Cornell student
The New York State Assembly has recognized Human Ecology student Jenna DiCostanzo '08 as a 'distinguished intern' for a policy analysis paper she wrote. (Nov. 4, 2008)

CU gets $1.67 million to keep fresh food safe
With $1.67 million from the USDA, two Cornell food scientists will work to prevent food-borne pathogens from contaminating fruits and vegetables during all phases of production. (Nov. 3, 2008)

Samantha the sheep gets a leg up, thanks to CU vets
Several disabled goats and sheep have been given artificial legs, thanks to several Cornell veterinarians working with Ithaca's Hangar Orthotics and Prosthetics. (Nov. 3, 2008)

Students learn how to sell cattle
In an animal science course, students learn how to merchandize cattle, which culminated in a sale of replacement beef heifers Oct. 25. (Nov. 3, 2008)

Robert Foote, pioneer in livestock reproduction, dies at 86
Robert H. Foote, a professor emeritus of animal science whose pioneering research led to in vitro fertilization in agricultural livestock, died of lung failure in Ithaca Oct. 27. A memorial service will be held Nov. 9. (Nov. 3, 2008)