Faculty News

Swanson Focuses on the Brain
Larry Swanson, the Milo Don and Lucille Appleman Professorship in Biological Sciences and director of the USC Neuroscience Graduate Program, was one of nine neuroscientists named as fellows to the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in February. He also was recently appointed to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

In other news, Swanson’s new book, “Brain Architecture: Understanding the Basic Plan,” published by Oxford University Press, has been released. It presents basic principles of the nervous system in a systematic way and is designed for readers who have an interest in the basic organization of the brain from the perspectives of neuroscience, philosophy, computer science and molecular biology.

Birge Opts for Opportunities in China
Bettine Birge has received a Fulbright Scholar Award to Beijing, China, for 2003-2004. She also has received a grant for one year of research in China from the American Council of Learned Studies, Committee on Scholarly Communication With China, funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities. In order to take advantage of these unprecedented research opportunities, Birge had to decline a recent invitation of one-year membership in the Princeton Institute for Advanced Studies.

American Society for Microbiology Recognizes Nealson
Kenneth Nealson, the Wrigley Chair in Environmental Studies and professor of earth sciences and biological sciences, has been honored with the American Society for Microbiology’s (ASM) Procter & Gamble Award in Applied and Environmental Microbiology. The award recognizes groundbreaking research and extraordinary achievement in applied and environmental microbiology.

Nealson is cited for his contributions to the microbiology of marine, freshwater, terrestrial and “other worldly” environments, according to the ASM announcement. He pioneered the field of modern geobiology, the interface between the biosphere and the geosphere. In his early work as a marine microbiologist, Nealson discovered quorum sensing, the phenomenon in which microbial communities create light. More recently he has turned to figuring out how life functions in extreme environments, and he is assisting NASA’s search for life in the solar system.

Fuhrman Elected to the American Academy of Microbiology
Jed Fuhrman, the McCulloch-Crosby Chair in Marine Biology and professor of biological sciences, has been elected to the American Academy of Microbiology (AAM). The AAM—the honorific leadership group within the American Society for Microbiology, the world’s oldest life sciences organization with more than 43,000 members—is the only group of its kind devoted entirely to microbiologists and the science of microbiology. Members of the AAM are elected through a highly selective, peer-review process, based on their records of scientific achievement and original contributions that have advanced microbiology. Only 1,937 members—also known as fellows—have been elected in the 47-year history of the AAM.

Adleman Earns Top Prize
Leonard Adleman, the Henry Salvatori Chair in Computer Science who teaches molecular biology in the College, recently won the A.M. Turing Award for his collaborative work in cryptography. Considered the top honor for researchers in the field of computer science, the annual award carries a $100,000 prize financed by Intel Corporation. While working at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1977, Adleman, along with co-award winners Ronald Rivest and Adi Shamir, developed the RSA algorithm. That code became the foundation of a generation of technology security products. Named after the founders, the algorithm is the basis for today’s most widely used encryption methods, with applications in Internet browsers and servers, electronic transactions in the credit card industry and products providing e-mail services.

Junior Faculty Make Waves
The future of any university is dependent on the cadre of young scholars with new vision and cutting-edge research that will advance their fields and enhance an institution’s reputation. Following are some of the College’s brightest stars—striving junior professors who are receiving recognition for research, teaching and service—who recently were honored for their work:

John Elliot Barnes, assistant professor of political science, was named a Robert Wood Johnson Fellow

Magnus Nordborg, assistant professor of molecular biology and biological sciences, was named an Alfred P. Sloan Fellow

Ko Honda and Sergey Lotostky, both assistant professors of mathematics, and Steve Finkel, assistant professor of molecular and computational biology, each received National Science Foundation-sponsored Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) awards

Shri Narayana, assistant professor in engineering, computer science and linguistics, received the USC School of Engineering Junior Research Award

Anna Krylov, assistant professor of chemistry, received the Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Teaching Award and an Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship

Gideon Yaffe, assistant professor of philosophy, received a research fellowship from the American Council of Learned Societies

Crigler Rethinks the Vote
Ann Crigler, associate professor of political science and director of the USC Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics, examines the legal, political and institutional problems of administering elections in the United States in her book “Rethinking the Vote: The Politics and Prospects of American Election Reform.” Published by Oxford University Press, the book centers on what can and should be learned about the voting process. It features work by leading academics in law, political science and communications, using the 2000 presidential election as a starting point to learn from what transpired and to offer potential solutions for the future. The book, scheduled for release in August, grew out of an interdisciplinary collaboration among USC College, USC Law School and Caltech, and was funded by USC Provost Lloyd Armstrong and his counterpart, Steven Koonin, at Caltech.

Glassner Helps Moore Analyze Fear
Sociology professor Barry Glassner appeared in Michael Moore’s Academy Award-winning documentary “Bowling for Columbine,” which takes an eye-opening and humorous look at the issues of fear and violence in America. Moore learned of Glassner’s research after reading his book “The Culture of Fear: Why Americans Fear the Wrong Things.” In the documentary, Glassner, an expert of culture and deviant behavior, discusses Americans’ fears and why many of them are unfounded.

As part of the project, Glassner took Moore and a film crew on a tour through South Central Los Angeles. “If you watch T.V. news or movies featuring South Central L.A., it is portrayed as a dangerous place where little is occurring but violent crime and drugs,” says Glassner. “But most of what you see in the area does not fit that image.

Moore was struck by the number of children playing in the streets compared to the wealthier, whiter neighborhoods where parents were more afraid to let their children go out and play,” Glassner adds.

Martin Reflects on Dewey
Public-opinion polls during educator John Dewey’s lifetime (1859-1952) name him one of the 10 most important thinkers in American history. English professor emeritus Jay Martin recounts the life and times of the eminent philosopher, pragmatist, education reformer and man of letters in his new book “The Education of John Dewey: A Biography,” published by Columbia University Press.

Lu Breaks Age Barriers
The Society of Experimental Psychologists (SEP) presented Zhong-Lin Lu with the 2003 Early Investigator Award for his “new techniques of analyses and perception of attention.” At the SEP conference in March, Lu, associate professor of psychology and biomedical engineering, also was elected as a SEP fellow, joining College faculty members Richard Thompson and Irving Biederman. At age 35, he is the youngest fellow in the society’s history.

Dalton and Christe Acknowledged by American Chemical Society
Two of the College’s adjunct chemistry professors, Larry Dalton and Karl Christe, have won prestigious awards from the American Chemical Society (ACS). Dalton, who also heads a research team at the University of Washington, was presented with the ACS Award in the Chemistry of Materials category. His contributions to materials chemistry range from advances in theory to improved processing techniques to synthesis of a new generation of electro-optic materials for telecommunications.

His colleague Christe, who also works with the U.S. Air Force, won the ACS Award in Inorganic Chemistry based on his lifetime achievements. Christe has published more than 300 peer-reviewed papers and holds more than 60 patents, many of them related to defense-orientated research. He and his co-workers are best known for their 1999 discovery of N5+ cation—the first demonstration in 110 years of a stable and energetic nitrogen species and only the second ever discovered.

James’ English Class Studies Shakespeare in the Flesh
As part of the College’s course-improvement grants, Heather James, associate professor of English, recently taught a general education class titled “Shakespeare and His Rivals.” To bring the subject to life, actor Brian Watt, a Yale University graduate who appeared on the television shows “The West Wing” and “Judging Amy,” was invited to read autobiographical speeches from “Othello.”

Consequently, a camera crew from Lighthouse Films attended the Shakespeare lecture class to get footage for their upcoming documentary, “The Pen Picture.” The film is based on an autobiography about the Watt family and is narrated by great-great grandfather Watt, a slave and freeman who slowly gathered funds to invest in local business and buy his children the finest education.

“The speeches of Othello—a former slave, Christian convert and military general for the Venetians—were especially moving in this context,” says James. “The event brought home the ways in which stories, by organizing historical events, can provide sources of strength and agency to individuals typically excluded from social authority and influence.”

Peters Represents U.S. Interests Abroad
Geraldine Peters, a research professor in the College’s Space Sciences Center and a member of Women in Science and Engineering (WISE), was elected to the U.S. National Committee for the International Astronomical Union (IAU). In this capacity, Peters will represent U.S. interests at IAU meetings, including the upcoming gathering in Sydney, Australia, this summer.

Byrd’s Work Resonates With Acoustical Society of America
Dani Byrd, associate professor of linguistics, received the 2003 R. Bruce Lindsay Award from the Acoustical Society of America. The annual $3,000 award is given to a society member under age 35 who has contributed substantially, through published papers, to the advancement of theoretical or applied acoustics. Byrd is the first winner from the speech communication technical area in 17 years.

Handley Elected Vice President of Western Literature Association
William Handley, associate English professor, was elected vice president of the Western Literature Association. In two years he will automatically become president of the association. One of Handley’s first responsibilities is to organize and host the association’s 2005 conference to be held in Southern California.

Bowlt and Konecny Chronicle a Russian Legacy
John Bowlt, professor of Slavic languages and literature, and Mark Konecny, curator in specialized libraries and archival collections in the Information Technology Services, have penned a new book titled “A Legacy Regained: Nikolai Khardzhiev and the Russian Avant-Garde.” The volume, published by Palace Editions, brings to light the life, work and collections of Khardzhiev, a noted scholar of the art and literature of revolutionary Russia. It includes major archival documents—many published for the first time—as well as 133 photographs that include both key avant-garde and lesser-known paintings and drawings from the Khardzhiev collection.

Russett Collaborates With Bogazici University
Associate English professor Margaret “Meg” Russett received a Fulbright Alumni Initiatives Award of $21,000 to create an intellectual exchange between USC faculty and faculty from Bogazici University in Istanbul, Turkey’s premier institution of higher education. Over the next two years, the USC College English department and Bogazici faculty will participate in team-taught lectures and seminars at USC, and in summer seminars on literary subjects and literary-cultural theory.

Pulido Receives Fellowship in American Studies
Laura Pulido, associate professor of geography, received a Haynes Faculty Fellowship of $10,000 for her research project “Latino and African-American Attitudes Toward Each Other in the City of Angels.” Nine research projects from faculty at six regional institutions were awarded the fellowships this year.