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Spring 2012

Spring 2012 cover
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Dreaming American

Housing dreams in the age of foreclosure.

Features

To Capture A King: A Short Story
Illustration of men playing chess in a bar
Arts & Humanities

To Capture A King: A Short Story

By Norbert Ehrenfreund '50GSAS

Hearts & Bones
Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic holding a skull
Health & Medicine

Hearts & Bones

Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic is at the forefront of regenerative medicine. Can her laboratory-grown body parts really work?

The Eyes of Gotham
Jen Chung and Jake Dobkin
Alumni

The Eyes of Gotham

How did Jen Chung and Jake Dobkin, cofounders of Gothamist, turn a simple message board into the hottest news source in town?

Russian Resolution
Illustration of Vladimir Putin
On Campus

Russian Resolution

Timothy Frye, director of Columbia’s Harriman Institute, explains what a weakened Putin means for Russia

Out of the Woods
Diane Paulus
Arts & Humanities

Out of the Woods

Theater director Diane Paulus '97SOA takes on Porgy and Bess

College Walk

Bookmakers
Illustration of horse jockeys riding books
Arts & Humanities

Bookmakers

A literary Run for the Roses at the New School

Window of the World
Vintage illustration of the Pulitzer Building
On Campus

Window of the World

The story of the stained-glass Lady Liberty at the journalism school

Known Unknowns
Illustration of brain
Science & Technology

Known Unknowns

A Columbia class called "Ignorance" invites researchers to publicly expose the gaps in their knowledge

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington?
Sale Lake City Temple
On Campus

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington?

A discussion of Mormonism and American politics at Columbia’s Institute for Religion, Culture, and Public Life

Poem: "Train Ride"
Subway train at station
Arts & Humanities

Poem: "Train Ride"

By Bill Zavatsky '74SOA, '74GS

Explorations

Tracking Down the Alzheimer’s Executioner
Karen Duff and fellow Columbia scientists Li Liu and Scott Small have shown how tau tangles spread throughout the Alzheimer's brain.
Health & Medicine

Tracking Down the Alzheimer’s Executioner

A new discovery brings scientists closer to understanding how the disease spreads

How Low Can We Go?
Rendering of NYC land bridge between Lower Manhattan and Governor's Island
Science & Technology

How Low Can We Go?

Columbia researchers propose what would be the city’s most ambitious land-reclamation project yet

Network

Jessica Greer Morris, Timothy Donnelly, and Other Alumni in the News
Jessica Greer Morris
Alumni

Jessica Greer Morris, Timothy Donnelly, and Other Alumni in the News

Columbians making headlines

Books

Book Review: "American Dervish"
Cover of "American Dervish" by Ayad Akhtar
Books

Book Review: "American Dervish"

By Ayad Akhtar '03SOA

Four Years for What?
Cover of "College: What It Was, Is, and Should Be" by Andrew Delbanco
Books

Four Years for What?

American Studies professor Andrew Delbanco discusses his book College: What It Was, Is, and Should Be

Book Review: "Diary of a Company Man"
Book cover: "Diary of a Company Man" by James S. Kunen
Books

Book Review: "Diary of a Company Man"

By James S. Kunen '70CC

Book Review: “The Vanishers”
Cover: "The Vanishers" by Heidi Julavits
Books

Book Review: “The Vanishers”

By Heidi Julavits

Book Review: “Panther Baby"
Cover of "Panther Baby" by Jamal Joseph
Books

Book Review: “Panther Baby"

By Jamal Joseph

Book Review: “Mongrels or Marvels"
Book cover: "Mongrels or Marvels: The Levantine Writings of Jacqueline Shohet Kahanoff"
Books

Book Review: “Mongrels or Marvels"

Edited by Deborah A. Starr and Sasson Somekh

Book Review: "Berlin 1961"
Cover of "Berlin 1961" by Frederick Kempe
Books

Book Review: "Berlin 1961"

By Frederick Kempe '77JRN

Book Review: "The Flame Alphabet"
"The Flame Alphabet" cover
Books

Book Review: "The Flame Alphabet"

By Ben Marcus

Bulletin

SIPA Dean John Coatsworth Appointed Provost
John Coatsworth
On Campus

SIPA Dean John Coatsworth Appointed Provost

The “transformational dean” at the School of International and Public Affairs enters a new role

Holder: Feds Still Investigating 2008 Economic Crash
Eric Holder and Lee Bollinger
On Campus

Holder: Feds Still Investigating 2008 Economic Crash

Eric Holder talks about the creation of a federal task forced aimed at rooting out the perpetrators of fraudulent lending and investing practices

Legendary “Cosmo” Editor Funds Media Institute
Helen Gurley and David Brown in 1984
On Campus

Legendary “Cosmo” Editor Funds Media Institute

Helen Gurley Brown gives $30 million for a new center that will support tech-savvy journalism

X-Men to Reside at Columbia
X-Men cartoon
On Campus

X-Men to Reside at Columbia

Columbia's Rare Book and Manuscript Library acquires Chris Claremont's Uncanny X-Men archives

Women’s Track-and-Field Team Earns Historic First
Columbia women's track and field team
On Campus

Women’s Track-and-Field Team Earns Historic First

Columbia women take home the team title at the Ivy League championships

Mess, Mess, Mess . . . Art
"Hermes 1" sculpture by Sarah Sze
On Campus

Mess, Mess, Mess . . . Art

A piece of sculpture by School of the Arts professor Sarah Sze is a pack rat's fantasy

Without Precedent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Honored at Law School
Ruth Bader Ginsburg at Columbia in 2012
On Campus

Without Precedent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Honored at Law School

The Supreme Court Justice, who did pro bono work for the ACLU while teaching at Columbia from 1972 to 1980, returns to Morningside Heights

Barnard, this is the White House Calling
Barack Obama at the Fortune magazine Most Powerful Women Summit in 2010
On Campus

Barnard, this is the White House Calling

President Obama will address Barnard's 2012 graduating seniors

In Brief: Spring 2012
Columbia Daily Spectator logo
On Campus

In Brief: Spring 2012

The Spectator goes digital, and other campus news

Finals

The Writing on the Wall
The Columbia Journalism school building in 1912
On Campus

The Writing on the Wall

How the J-school's Pulitzer Hall got its name

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