Stories

Feb. 24, 2017

Andrew Willett ’17 worked with Dr. Warren Mansell, a leading Perceptual Control Theory researcher at Manchester University, on a study that showed how inept we are at gauging other people’s intentions.

Feb. 24, 2017

Associate Head Track Coach Justin Harris is working with the USA National Bobsled and Skeleton Team in the run-up to next year’s winter Olympics, using his expertise in biomechanics to help them shave hundredths of a second off of their starting-line sprints.

Feb. 10, 2017

Clare McClellan ’18, an environmental studies major from Portland, OR, spent the fall semester of her junior year aboard the SSV Robert C. Seamons sailing from Samoa to New Zealand to study climate change in the South Pacific.

Feb. 10, 2017

Now living on opposite coasts, Aaron Hill ’16 and Jake Brawer ’16 recently had a nice surprise—news that a paper they coauthored based on their research at Vassar has been published in Frontiers in Robotics and AI, a top-ranking open-access journal.

Feb. 6, 2017

Several hundred people marched in downtown Poughkeepsie Feb. 1 in support of refugees, immigrants, and other vulnerable people, chanting, “No hate, no fear, refugees are welcome here.” About 100 Vassar students took part in the rally on the steps of the Poughkeepsie Post Office.

Feb. 3, 2017

In his podcast series Hi-Phi Nation, Vassar Associate Professor of Philosophy Barry Lam uses storytelling and contemporary ethical dilemmas to bring philosophy to a wide audience.

Feb. 2, 2017

Acclaimed poet Edna St. Vincent Millay, class of 1917, came to represent the modern, liberated woman of the Jazz Age, free of the restrictions of the past. A special Vassar exhibition honoring the 100th anniversary of Millay’s graduation and the 125th anniversary of her birth offers intimate glimpses into her life. Edna St. Vincent Millay: Treasures From Steepletop is on view through June 11 in the Thompson Memorial Library and the Art Library.

Jan. 31, 2017

As an ethnobotanist—someone who studies the interactions between humans and plants—Maria Fadiman ’91 has traveled around the world, learning how indigenous people use the plants and trees around them and how to best protect their knowledge for future generations.

Jan. 30, 2017

If you’re a sci fi aficionado, or even if you aren’t, you might want to check out ars Paradoxica, now in its second year and one of the best sci fi podcasts in the country, according to Popular Science. Julian Mundy, a Vassar class of 2013 film major, is one of the writers.

Jan. 27, 2017

Olaf Carlson-Wee ’12 recently established his own hedge fund and brought in $5 million from investors who are betting the future will bring success to cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.

Jan. 27, 2017

Cheap energy isn’t really cheap. That’s the thesis of Climate Change and Natural Disasters by Vinod Thomas, a former member of Vassar’s Department of Economics. Thomas argues that turning to renewable energy will not only help save the planet but also enrich the world economy.

Jan. 20, 2017

Film major Bryce Daniel, Vassar class of 2017, chose artist and sculptor Harry Roseman as the subject for his final project for his documentary filmmaking class. Professor of art and sculpture at Vassar, Roseman takes us on a brief tour of his home studio and offers us a glimpse into his process of making art.

Jan. 20, 2017

Every year, the Office of International Services and the Vassar International Students Association cohost one of the most vibrant events of the fall semester—Kaleidoscope.   A celebration of Vassar’s cultural diversity, Kaleidoscope features international cuisine, a dessert contest, a flag ceremony, and a talent show.

Jan. 18, 2017

Rachel Panitch ’06, who spent time as an artist in residence at Zion National Park, took part in an amazing PBS video that features her spirited violin playing against the gorgeous backdrop of the park. The combination of parks and artistry goes back many years (most are in the visual arts, making Panitch one of the rare audio artist), and Panitch talks about the different types of inspiration she found that helped influence the compositions she created.

Jan. 17, 2017

Elizabeth Howe Bradley, the Brady-Johnson Professor of Grand Strategy at Yale University, has been elected President of Vassar College.

Jan. 16, 2017

In Death and Taxidermy, director and producer Mariel Carr ’04 and animator Jacob Rivkin ’07 share interesting facts and stories about the art. The animated and narrated videos range from the tale of a young woman who learned taxidermy by practicing on the dead pigeons and sparrows on the streets of New York to technical details such as the chemicals needed to prepare an animal’s hide.

Jan. 6, 2017

Vassar alumna Ellen Silbergeld ’67 did some of the first research on the effects of lead poisoning, and Vassar alumnus Saul Kerpelman ’76 led the legal battle against landlords in Baltimore who continued to ignore the dangers of lead paint for decades, despite the scientific evidence.

Dec. 20, 2016

Transitions, a program for first generation, low income, and/or undocumented students at Vassar, begins with a six-day pre-orientation experience and continues throughout the students’ Vassar careers with an ongoing peer mentoring program.

Dec. 15, 2016

Hurricane Matthew, the most powerful storm to make landfall in Haiti in decades, left an estimated 1.4 million people in dire need of humanitarian assistance. Three Vassar student organizations—the Haiti Project, the Caribbean Students Alliance, and Jewett House—collaborated on a traditional Caribbean Christmas dinner to raise money for the relief effort.

Dec. 15, 2016

One of Vassar’s few college-wide academic requirements is the Freshman Writing Seminar. First-year students choose from about 50 courses in disciplines ranging from Africana studies to women’s studies. So what do students read and write in a Freshman Writing Seminar offered by the Department of Mathematics and Statistics? Quite a lot, actually.