Faculty Books

Celebrating 125 Years
Rendezvous With Light: A Collection of Poetry and Photographs (Figueroa Press, 2006) showcases 21 poems by renowned writer and teacher Carol Muske-Dukes, and 30 USC-themed photographs by undergraduate Robbie Kriences. Published by USC’s Figueroa Press as part of USC’s 125th anniversary, this book stands as a testament to the university’s encouragement of intellect and imagination. Muske-Dukes is a professor of English in the College.

The City at Night
Many have written about human impacts on the natural world. But Ecological Consequences of Artificial Night Lighting (Island Press, 2006), edited by Travis Longcore, research assistant professor of geography, and Catherine Rich, is the first book to consider the environmental effects of the intentional illumination of the night. In it, leading scientists from around the world review the state of knowledge on the subject and describe light’s specific impacts on a wide range of living things, providing a scientific rationale for efforts to conserve the dark of the nighttime environment.

Asian Democracies
In Rising China and Asian Democratization: Socialization to ‘Global Culture’ in the Political Transformations of Thailand, China and Taiwan  (Stanford University Press, 2006), Daniel Lynch, associate professor of international relations, presents his argument that democratization is an inherently international process. According to Lynch, it is achieved within states through socialization and ultimately allows entry to the global culture. He demonstrates this by exploring the democratization of both Taiwan and Thailand. China, however, resists democracy and the idea of global culture on the grounds that it is a Western ideal; Lynch contends that the country’s stance is not likely to change.

A How-To for International Commerce
In Negotiating Trade: Developing Countries in the WTO and NAFTA (Cambridge University Press, 2006), John Odell, professor of international relations, sheds light on three aspects of trade negotiations between governments: the strategies developing countries use; coalition formation; and how they learn and influence other participants’ beliefs. The book should appeal to readers interested in negotiation, international political economy, trade, development, global governance or international law. Developing country negotiators and those who train them may find practical insights on how to avoid pitfalls and improve negotiating skills.

Inside Ethnicity and Activism
Through her masterful use of archives and extensive interviews, Laura Pulido has woven together Black, Brown, Yellow and Left (University of California Press, 2006), an illuminating study of third-world radicalism in Southern California in the 1960s and 1970s. The professor of geography and American studies and ethnicity skillfully compares the ways in which the Black Panther Party, El Centro de Acción Social y Autónomo and the Japanese-American collective East Wind sought to realize their ideas about race and class, gender relations and multiracial alliances. This book earned Pulido USC’s Phi Kappa Phi Award for Faculty Excellence.

An Early Modern Travelogue
History professor Peter Mancall’'s book Travel Narratives from the Age
of Discovery: An Anthology (Oxford University Press, 2006), presents some of the most important travel accounts of the 15th and 16th centuries. The narratives are written by authors from Spain, France, Italy, England, China and North Africa. From Christopher Columbus to lesser-known figures such as the Huguenot missionary Jean de Lery, the anthology brings together firsthand accounts of places connected by the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. The collection offers a global view of travel at a crucial point in world history, with accounts written by non-European authors, including two new translations.

Practical Advice to Combat a Social Blight
Despite the decline in nationwide crime, membership in street gangs continues to increase, writes Malcolm Klein, professor emeritus of sociology, and his co-author, Cheryl Maxson, in Street Gang Patterns and Policies (Oxford University Press, 2006). In an attempt to dispel commonly held misconceptions about street gangs, they explain gang proliferation, the risk factors in communities that lead to gang formation and why adolescents join. They then examine current prevention and intervention methods — which they declare ineffective — and offer tips for practitioners on how to intervene and control gangs.

Getting Domestic — and Civic — with the Great Teacher
D. Brendan Nagle, professor emeritus of history, explores Aristotle’s analysis of the relationship between the ancient Greek household and the state in The Household as the Foundation of Aristotle’s Polis (Cambridge University Press, 2006). Nagle presents Aristotle’s ideas that the household provided great economic, political and social resources contributing to the success of the city, while the state offered its households a chance to thrive. He offers a fresh look at Aristotle’s political philosophy by detailing the historical context within which the philosopher worked.

Tools for Workplace Change
Employees tend to resist changes in the workplace, writes Jerald Jellison, professor of psychology, in Managing the Dynamics of Change: The Fastest Path to Creating an Engaged and Productive Workforce (McGraw-Hill, 2006). Jellison contends that leaders can make the change process much less taxing on employees by taking into account their emotional needs. A former consultant to Fortune 500 companies, Jellison examines the five stages of the change process and introduces his techniques to help employers guide employees to accept workplace changes quickly and effectively.

Weighing Nature and Nurture
Why do some people develop psychiatric and substance use disorders and others don’t — despite their similar family backgrounds and life experiences? In Genes, Environment and Psychopathology: Understanding the Causes of Psychiatric and Substance Use Disorders (Guilford Press, 2006), Carol Prescott, professor of psychology, and her co-author, Kenneth Kendler, present the findings of the Virginia Adult Twin Study. The project involved more than 9,000 individuals, and sheds considerable light on the interplay of genetic and environmental factors to create risks for disorders such as depression, eating disorders and alcoholism.

Performance and Community
In 2005 Performance in America: Contemporary U.S. Culture and the Performing Arts (Duke University Press, 2005), performance studies scholar David Román demonstrates the vital importance of the performing arts to contemporary U.S. culture. Román, professor of English and American studies and ethnicity, looks at a series of specific performances mounted between 1994 and 2004, and challenges the belief that theater, dance and live music are marginal art forms in the U.S. He describes the pivotal role that the performing arts play in local, regional and national communities, emphasizing the power of live performance to create a dialogue between artists and audiences.

Historical View of Visual Culture
The 19th century saw the growth of new visual forms such as photography and cinema, and the development of the modern city and consumer societies. In The Nineteenth-Century Visual Culture Reader (Routledge, 2004), Vanessa Schwartz, associate professor of history, and her co-editor, Jeannene Przyblyski, bring together key writings on visual culture. Among the 38 essays introduced by the editors, are "“Baby’s Picture Is Always Treasured"” (some once thought such photos were “stupid”) and "“Molding Emancipation"” (how patriotic artwork dealt with this momentous event).