CAS Students Publish Tenth Annual Research Journal
“Sovietization and the Jews in the Muslim Regions of the USSR,” “A Social Construction: The Importance of Architectural Design, Community Facilities, and Housing Quality in the Success of Public Housing: A Study of London and New York,” and “Behavioral Measure of Temporal Contrast Sensitivity Development in Macaque Monkeys”—these are just three examples of the many research projects conducted by College of Arts and Science (CAS) students during the 2005-2006 academic year. Abstracts of more than 150 of these were published this fall in the college’s annual journal of undergraduate research, Inquiry, vol. X.
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CIC Study Documents Violence Against Aid Workers
The rate of violence against aid workers around the globe is lower than previously thought, according to a new study by the Center on International Cooperation (CIC) at NYU and the Humanitarian Policy Group (HPG) of the Overseas Development Institute. The report, “Providing Aid in Insecure Environments: Trends in Policy and Operations,” may be downloaded at CIC’s Web site: www.cic.nyu.edu.
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Do Genes Cause Cavities? NYU Dental Researchers Study Twins for Clues
A pair of identical twins develops cavities on the same tooth surfaces over the course of several years. Their dentist wonders: how much of a role does genetics play in this pattern?
In an effort to explain how genetics and the environment interact in cavities development, NYU dental researchers Walter Bretz and Patricia Corby have assembled 1,100 pairs of twins—the largest group of twins ever gathered for oral health research—to assess the relative significance of 15 potential factors in cavities development, including such anatomical problems as porous enamel and deep pits and fissures, salivary protein profiles, oral bacteria levels, sucrose taste preferences, and other factors linked to both genetics and the environment, as well as socioeconomic concerns, such as a lack of access to fluoridated water and dental care. | Full Story »
Faculty Dialogue: Examining the Role of Humanities Research on the Academic Landscape
The humanities play a special role in the academic landscape—reaching into some segment of all disciplines. Research in this field has evolved dramatically over the past several decades. NYU Research recently spoke to Edward J. Sullivan, dean for the humanities in the Faculty of Arts and Science; Jane Tylus, vice provost for academic affairs; and Mariët Westermann, director, Institute of Fine Arts, to gain insight into how this happened and the current state of humanities research at NYU and beyond.
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Flooded Florence: The Day Modern Art Conservation Was Born
On November 4, 1966, after a month of heavy rain, the Arno River overflowed its banks, flooding the city of Florence and causing incalculable damage to life, property, and the cultural patrimony of Italy and the world. Now known as “l’Alluvione,” the Florence flood revolutionized the field of art conservation and moved it from a craft to a specialized field for professionals dedicated to the study of the technology and conservation of works of art and historic artifacts.
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Karen Adolph Receives NIH MERIT Award to Continue Work on Motor Skill Acquisition in Infants
For the past 15 years, Karen Adolph, a professor in NYU’s Departments of Psychology and Neural Science, has been studying how infants acquire motor skills in order to understand more general processes of learning and development.
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Malamud Receives $9M NIH Grant for Diagnostic Work
Daniel Malamud, professor of basic sciences at the New York University
College of Dentistry, was recently awarded a five-year, $9,000,000
grant from the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research
(NIDCR) to continue developing a portable microfluidic “lab-on-a-chip”
for rapid point-of-care detection of multiple bacterial and viral
targets using oral fluids.
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Methamphetamine Use by NYC’s Gay Black and Latino Men Now Exceeds that of Whites
Black and Latino gay or bisexual men in New York City are more likely
to use methamphetamines than whites, according to a new, 14-month study
by NYU’s Steinhardt School and New York City’s Department of Health and
Mental Hygiene.
“The levels of use among gay and bisexual men of color indicate a shift in methamphetamine use, especially within New York City’s gay community, from a stereotypically ‘white’ drug to one that is crossing racial lines,” said Perry Halkitis, the study’s lead author and director of NYU’s Center for Health, Identity, Behavior & Prevention Studies (CHIBPS). | Full Story »
New Software Allows Scientists to Navigate the Brain in 3-D
Early cartographers would mark the unknown areas on their maps with the
words “Terra Incognita.” Today’s neuroresearchers could use the same
Latin phrase in their work with the human brain, as many areas of
“uncharted water” remain to be explored. Two modern-day explorers at
New York University are using three-dimensional mapping techniques to
break new ground in the research and understanding of the brain.
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New Wagner Web Site Offers Forum for Research Ethics
Over the past quarter century, social scientists have worked to
quantify the effects of government social programs. For example,
changes in federal job training programs and the welfare system have
been accompanied by studies in which different groups of people receive
different levels of those services. Outcomes such as earnings and
employment can then be monitored. But the subjects are often members of
vulnerable or disempowered populations—single mothers, children in poor
families, people with limited education, among others.
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News Media’s Focus on Candidates’ Race, Ethnicity Produces Greater Public Policy Attention
Newspaper coverage of political candidates’ race or ethnicity coincides
with greater coverage of public policy issues, according to a study by
researchers at NYU and North Central College. However, the study also
found that coverage of public policy issues in contests that include
either a black or Latino candidate and a white candidate is less than
in elections with two white candidates. The study, by professors
Stephen Caliendo at North Central College and Charlton McIlwain at NYU,
appeared this fall in the Harvard International Journal of Press/Politics.
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NIH Supports Novel Vaccine and Antimicrobial Research at NYU
Evgeny A. Nudler, professor of biochemistry at the School of Medicine,
recently received the Director’s Pioneer Award from the National
Institutes of Health (NIH). The award provides Nudler with $2.5 million
for his research over five years.
“The Pioneer Award supports exceptionally creative scientists who bring their talents, expertise, and perspectives to bear on some of the biggest challenges in biomedical research,” says Elias Zerhouni, director of NIH. | Full Story »
NYU, Pratt Researchers Discover Why Blue Fades in Last Judgment
The 20-year restoration of Michelangelo’s frescoes on the ceiling of
the Sistine Chapel has left visitors in awe of the work’s original
majesty—notably the brilliance of the blue that graces the Last Judgment’s
sky. Recent investigations into this shade of blue—ultramarine
blue—have brought to light the pigment’s tendency to fade. Is it
possible that the longevity of such a masterpiece as the Last Judgment could be in peril?
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Performance Studies Professor Researches the 1959 Work of Alan Kaprow
André Lepecki, associate professor in the Department of Performance
Studies at the Tisch School of the Arts, will direct a “redoing” of
Allan Kaprow’s seminal performance piece 18 Happenings in 6 Acts
(1959), for the Allan Kaprow exhibit at Haus der Kunst, Munich,
Germany. This is the first “redoing” of Kaprow’s influential work,
whose performances at the Reuben Gallery in New York City in 1959
opened up whole new fields of possibilities for visual arts, the
performing arts, and post-modern dance in the following decades.
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Social Work’s Daniel Gardner Explores Ways to Improve End-of-Life Care
No one can deny that America is graying. As baby boomers age and their parents live longer, the demographic switch to an older America is creating a critical need for geriatric health care professionals, including social workers, trained to enhance the health and well-being of older adults and their families.
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Steinhardt’s Nissenbaum Puts Values in Play for Video Game Makers
As video games became prominent as a form of entertainment, parents and
others raised concerns about their violent and sexually explicit
content. The response was based on precedent—as with movies earlier in
the 20th century, game makers slapped a rating on their products to
give consumers an idea of the content embedded in games such as “Doom,”
“Half Life,” and “Mortal Combat.”
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Stern Professor Explains Soaring CEO Pay
In recent decades, CEO compensation in the United States has soared, outpacing the growth of shareholder earnings and employee pay and triggering a large amount of controversy.
Stern School of Business professor Augustin Landier, together with MIT professor Xavier Gabaix, recently examined the underlying causes of this trend, discovering that rising CEO pay has been a function of the substantial growth in the size and value of U.S. firms, a view contrary to past scholarly explanations. | Full Story »
