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2023 AchievementsRecent faculty, student, and alumni accomplishments

The distinct silhouette of AU's Hall of Science

December

Vladimir Airapetian (Physics) received a grant from the Space Telescope Science Institute for the project “An X-ray through Radio Exo-Space Weather Campaign to Study the Infant Sun DS Tuc.”

Michael Alonzo (Environmental Science) received a $10,000 grant from the International Society of Arboriculture for the project “When, where, and by how much do urban trees reduce temperatures in the city? A review of the literature.”

Will Barnes (Physics) received a $60,000 grant from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the project “How Are Active Region Properties and Heating Connected?”

Frederick Bruhweiler (Physics) received supplemental funding of $58,241.15 (new total: $726,011.61) from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the project “Developing Technologies for Instruments to Study High-Energy Processes in the Solar Atmosphere.”

Orisanmi Burton (Anthropology) received a favorable review in The Progressive Magazine on his new book, Tip of the Spear: Black Radicalism, Prison Repression, and the Long Attica Revolt (University of California Press, 2023)

Thomas Fauchez (Physics) received a $24,613 grant from the Space Telescope Science Institute for the project “TRAPPIST-1 Planets: Atmospheres Or Not?”

Anton Fedyashin (History) contributed to an article in Responsible Statecraft, “Symposium: Peace or destruction — what was Kissinger's impact?

Laura Juliano (Psychology) is a featured expert in a Scientific American article, “How Much Caffeine Is Too Much?”

Peter Kuznick (History) spoke with TVC, RTVI, CGTN, WION News, Izvestia, Russia Today, Radio Sputnik, and RTR Russian TV about a variety of topics ranging from the House hearing on antisemitism on college campuses to the ongoing conflict in Israel/Gaza.

Shubha Pathak (Philosophy and Religion) published (Open Access) the book chapter "Gembedded narratives: Jewelled peacetime tales of Rāma’s exile and Rāvaṇa’s domicile as alternative afterlife anticipations in the Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa” in Visions and Revisions in Sanskrit Narrative: Studies in the Sanskrit Epics and Purāṇas, edited by Raj Balkaran and McComas Taylor (Canberra: Australian National University Press, 2023).

Thurka Sangaramoorthy (Anthropology) was interviewed about her new book, Landscapes of Care: Immigration and Health in Rural America (University of North Carolina Press, 2023), in the Daily Yonder.

Tracy Weitz (Sociology) received a $49,726 grant from the Society of Family Planning for the project “Extending Gestation Beyond the Mythical Point of Viability.”

November

Vladimir Airapetian (Physics) received supplemental funding of $39,972 (new total: $78,779) from University of California, Berkeley, for the project “Observationally Constrained Modeling of the Origin and Impacts of Exoplanetary Space Weather.”

Vladimir Airapetian (Physics) received supplemental funding of $10,051 (new total: $50,259) from the Space Telescope Science Institute for the project “Evolving Magnetic Lives Of Young Suns.”

The microplastics research of Barbara Balestra and Stephen MacAvoy (Environmental Science) was featured in the Washington Post, which detailed how their findings could impact the clean-up efforts of the Anacostia and Potomac Rivers.

Laurie Bayet (Neuroscience) received a $70,000 grant from the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation (BBRF) for the project “Algorithms for Social Communication in the Developing Human Brain.”

Frederick Bruhweiler (Physics) received a $112,044 grant from the Space Telescope Science Institute for the project “High Resolution Spectroscopic Mapping of Mass Loss in Luminous Blue Variables.”

Frederick Bruhweiler (Physics) received supplemental funding of $32,000 (new total: $667,770) from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the project “Developing Technologies for Instruments to Study High-Energy Processes in the Solar Atmosphere.”

Orisanmi Burton (Anthropology) has published a new book, Tip of the Spear: Black Radicalism, Prison Repression, and the Long Attica Revolt (University of California Press, 2023), which was reviewed in The Progressive.

Stefano Costanzi (Chemistry) published an article in Arms Control Today titled "The Chemical Weapons Convention Is Stronger Than You Think.” 

The "Art at Amtrak" commission A Great Public Walk by Tim Doud (Studio Art) is on display at Union Station in Washington, DC, though winter 2024.

Kyle Hackett’s (Studio Art) solo exhibition Circular Narratives is on view through December 30 at Vinegar in Birmingham, Alabama. 

Mary Eschelbach Hansen (Economics) was quoted in a Newsweek article on millionaires today and how changing wealth reflects the continued value of a college degree.

Andy Holtin (Studio Art) is the KID Museum’s visiting artist in fall 2023. He created a Theater of Objects, a collaborative and interactive exhibit with KID Museum apprentices that was unveiled at KID Museum Bethesda Metro Center on November 5.

Sara Clarke Kaplan (Literature and Antiracist Research and Policy Center) spoke with The Chronicle of Higher Education in the article, “Where Do Colleges’ Antiracism Centers Go From Here?”

Peter Kuznick (History) spoke with WION News, ZVEZDA, acTVism Munich, TV3, RTVI, Izvestia, RT Spanish, NTV Russian Television, CGTN, India Times Now, Hindustan Times International, and Channel One (Russia) about a variety of topics ranging from the ongoing conflict in Ukraine to the Biden-Xi meeting.

Carl Menninger (Theatre/Musical Theatre) spoke on Mapping the College Audition: An MTCA Podcast about program auditions, blending art and social justice, and more.

Michael Robinson (Mathematics and Statistics) received supplemental funding of $130,000 (new total: $224,000) from the Office of Naval Research (ONR) for the project “Topological Acoustical Feature Extraction and Exploitation.”

Elizabeth Rule (Critical Race, Gender, and Culture Studies) received the Outstanding Book Award from the Association for Ethnic Studies for her book, Indigenous DC: Native People and the Nation's Capital (Georgetown University Press, 2023).

Nancy Snider (Performing Arts) received an $8,000 grant from the Koster Foundation, Inc., for the project “Koster Foundation Summer 2024 Study Grants for Music Majors.” 

Andrew Taylor (Arts Management) spoke on the podcast Leading the Way with Jill S. Robinson on the episode “The Overhead Myth: Reconsidering Nonprofit Financial Models with Andrew Taylor.”

Amelia Tseng (World Languages and Cultures) published an an article in The Conversation titled “Language induces an identity crisis for the children and grandchildren of Latino immigrants.”

October

Dan Arbell (History, Center for Israel Studies) spoke with WUSA9 and NBC4 Washington about the Hamas attack on Israel.

Naomi S. Baron (professor emerita, Literature) spoke with Scientific American about her new book Who Wrote This? (Stanford University Press, 2023). She also wrote a commentary for The Chronicle of Higher Education about how faculty can approach academic writing responsibilities in connection to AI.

Laurie Bayet (Neuroscience) received a $25,000 grant from the  Karen Toffler Charitable Trust for the project “Uncovering algorithms for social communication in the developing human brain.”

Laura Beers (History) wrote a column for CNN Opinion on the value and limitations of a new feminist retelling of Orwell’s 1984.

Raychelle Burks (Chemistry) published the research paper "Clarifying the complex chemistry of cobalt(II) thiocyanate-based tests for cocaine using single-crystal X-ray diffraction and spectroscopic techniques" in the Journal of Forensic Sciences.

Ernesto Castañeda (Sociology) spoke with The National Desk about the connection between illegal immigration and terrorism. 

Thomas Fauchez (Physics) received a $112,413 grant from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the project “Detectability of water in the atmosphere of terrestrial habitable zone exoplanets due to exo-volcanism: a false positive for habitability.”

Dara W. Ford (Health Studies) was featured in a WalletHub article about “Halloween By The Numbers.”

Amos Golan (Economics) received supplemental funding of $86,480 (for a new total of $146,624) from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) for the project “The Value of Publicly Available Information and Data.”

Kathleen Holton (Health Studies) spoke with The Wall Street Journal about how the United States and the European Union differ in regulation of food additives. 

Philip Johnson (Physics) received supplemental funding of $53,364 (for a new total of $267,344) from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the project “Interpreting Cassini CIRS Data with a Photochemical Model using Improved ab initio Reaction Rate Coefficients.”

Peter Kuznick (History) spoke with CNN News 18, Russia One, WION News, NTV, TVC, Republic TV India, and Iran Daily, about a variety of topics ranging from the Israel/Palestine conflict to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. 

Thurka Sangaramoorthy (Anthropology) received supplemental funding of $49,941 from University of Maryland (for a new total of $88,079) for the project “Research Employing Environmental Systems and Occupational Health Policy Analyses to Interrupt the Impact of Structural Racism on Agricultural Workers and Their Respiratory Health (RESPIRAR).” She also spoke with KCBS Radio about her new book Landscapes of Care (UNC Press, 2023).

Anastasia Snelling (Health Studies) received additional funding from the DC Department of Health for two projects: $200,000 for “Health Equity & Advancing Health Literacy - DC (HEAL-DC) - Year 2,” and $125,000 for “Food Matters: Nourishing the Body and Soul (SNAP-Ed) - Year 2.”

David Vine (Anthropology) was interviewed on Democracy Now! and quoted in Politico’s influential National Security Detail.

September

Daniel Abraham’s (Performing Arts) CD collaboration ALTISSIMA: Works for High Baroque Trumpet was reviewed by Early Music America, “Zesty Music for High Baroque Trumpet.” 

The Ann Ferren Curriculum Design Award was given to Professors Tanja Aho and Mary Ellen Curtin (Critical Race, Gender, and Culture Studies) for developing a certificate in Disability Studies and fostering a disability community and awareness across campus.

Michael Alonzo (Environmental Science) received a grant from Oceana for the project “ARTIS analysis of DWF and FMFO.”

Valentina Aquila (Environmental Science) received a grant from Michigan Technological University for $66,476 for the project “Tracking volcanic volatiles from magma reservoir to the atmosphere: identifying precursors and optimizing models and satellite observations for future major. Aquila also received a $12,000 grant from National Academies for “The Impact of Airport Activity on Local Air Quality.”

Dan Arbell (Meltzer Schwartzberg Center for Israel Studies) spoke with Voice of America about the state of Saudi Arabia-Israel relations. 

Laurie Bayet (Neuroscience) received a $25,000 grant from Karen Toffler Charitable Trust for “research uncovering algorithms for social communication in the developing human brain.”

Bruce J. Berger (Literature), published his third novel this spring, To See God (Black Rose Writing, 2023), the sequel to The Flight of the Veil (Black Rose Writing, 2023), an early draft of which was his Masters Thesis at the American University MFA program in Creative Writing.

Raychelle Burks (Chemistry) received a $55,169 grant from Doane University for the project “IUSE: EHR Track 1 Engaged Student Learning, Level 2: Developing computational efficacy and skill within an inclusive community of practice in the natural sciences.”

Orisanmi Burton (Anthropology) spoke with The Majority Report With Sam Seder about his research and new book, Tip of the Spear: Black Radicalism, Prison Repression, and the Long Attica Revolt (University of California Press, 2023). David Vine (Anthropology) also appeared on the program.

Ernesto Castañeda (Sociology) spoke with The National Desk, Univision, France24, and NTN24 about a variety of topics related to US immigration policy and activity on the southern border.

David Culver (Environmental Science) received a $29,917 grant from the National Park Service for the project “The Amphipod Fauna of Seepage Springs in National Capital Parks East.”

Various CAS members were honored with CTRL awards: The Milton and Sonia Greenberg Scholarship of Teaching & Learning Award is split between Shoaleh Dehghan (Chemistry) and a team of faculty representing The Initiative for STEM Education, Equity, and Ethics (ISE3) - Meg Bentley (Biology), Ellen Feder (Philosophy and Religion), Nathan Harshman (Physics), Shari Watkins (CTRL and SOE), and Lauren Weis (Philosophy & Religion).

CTRL also released their 2023 cohort of Faculty Fellows, including several CAS faculty: 

  • Tanja Aho: Inclusive Pedagogy Faculty Fellow

  • Santiago Toledo: Inclusive Pedagogy Faculty Fellow

  • Edward Helfers: Scholarship of Teaching & Learning (SoTL) Faculty Fellow

  • Andrew Wasserman: Scholarship of Teaching & Learning (SoTL) Faculty Fellow

  • Cindy Blair Van Dam: AU Core Faculty Fellow

Thomas Fauchez (Physics) received a grant from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the project “Detectability of water in the atmosphere of terrestrial habitable zone exoplanets due to exo-volcanism: a false positive for habitability”

Nathan Harshman (Physics) received a grant from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for $110,000 for “District of Columbia Space Grant Consortium Budget Proposal for National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program: Opportunities in NASA STEM FY 2020-2024.”

Karen L. Knee (Environmental Science) spoke with Wired about the dangers of the bacteria Vibrio vulnificus — which is prevalent in hot coastal waters.

Caroline Kuo (Health Studies) received a grant for $28,277 from Brown University for the project “Schools Championing Safe South Africa: An Intervention Engaging Teachers and Students in Adolescent Prevention of HIV Risk and Intimate Partner Violence.” Kuo also received a grant for $53,575 from Brown University for the project “Advancing Integrated Alcohol-HIV Training of Frontline Providers in a Global Priority Setting.”

Peter Kuznick (History) spoke with NTV, RTVI, CGTN, Times Now News, and TASS about a variety of topics ranging from nuclear weapons history to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Stephen MacAvoy (Environmental Science) spoke with National Geographic about how to make sense of extreme weather events. 

Manissa Maharawal (Anthropology) spoke with NPR about the history of tech companies interfering with intracity transportation.

Pamela Nadell (History, Jewish Studies Program) wrote an article for The Conversation about the rise in antisemitism on X (formerly known as Twitter).

Andrea Pearson’s (Art History) essay, “Gender, Sexuality, and the Future of Agency Studies in Northern Art, 1400-1600,” was published by the Journal of Historians of Netherlandish Art.

Thurka Sangaramoorthy (Anthropology) received a grant from the University of Maryland for $38,138 for the project “Research Employing Environmental Systems and Occupational Health Policy Analyses to Interrupt the Impact of Structural Racism on Agricultural Workers and Their Respiratory Health (RESPIRAR).”

Allison Tepper (Health Studies) spoke with Forbes about the health benefits of dates. Allan Lichtman (History) spoke with The Hill about Republican-controlled states’ interference with K-12 education. 

August

Vladimir Airapetian (Physics) received a $20,104 grant from the Space Telescope Science Institute for the project “Evolving Magnetic Lives Of Young Suns.”

Michael Baron (Mathematics and Statistics) published the 2019 version of his book Probability and Statistics for Computer Scientists (Chapman and Hall, 2019) in Chinese earlier this year.

Laurie Bayet (Neuroscience) was awarded the 2023 NARSAD Young Investigator Grant

Kim Blankenship (Sociology) received a $12,885 grant from the George Washington University for the project “District of Columbia Center for AIDS Research (DC CFAR).”

Ernesto Castañeda spoke with the Washington Post about the Southern US Border. He was also interviewed by NTN24 regarding the Georgia surrender.

Julia Chiffon (Mathematics and Statistics) received a $196,861 grant from the National Science Foundation for the project “Collaborative Research: Advancing Inference of Phylogenetic Trees and Networks Under Multispecies Coalescent with Hybridization and Gene Flow.”

Elizabeth Cotter (Health Studies) received a $142,743 grant from the National Institutes of Health for the project “Reducing Maternal Stress to Improve Obesity-related Parenting Practices.”

Tim Doud (Studio Art) received a commission for Amtrak’s public art program, Art At Amtrak, at Washington’s Union Station. The artwork, A Great Public Walk, will debut in September.

Gregory Harry (Physics) received a $66,519 grant from the National Science Foundation for the project “Collaborative Research: Center for Coatings Research.”

Charles Philippe Jean-Pierre’s (Studio Art) exhibition Flare is on view at the Tephra ICA in Reston, Virginia June 29–October 15, 2023.

Philip Johnson (Physics) received a $27,297.89 grant (in addition to previous funding of $393,230.11) from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for the project “Research on the Causes and Consequences of Ionospheric Outflow.”

Peter Kuznick (History) spoke with NTV Russian Television, RTVI, WION News, and CGTN about a variety of topics ranging from the ongoing conflict in Ukraine to the movie Oppenheimer. 

Allan Lichtman (History) spoke with The Daily Mail about the rules for convicted felons running for office. He also spoke with Raw Story about former president Donald Trump’s indictments and how it could impact his campaign. 

Chemi Montes (Graphic Design) won a Platinum award in the Graphis Annual Poster Competition for his fall 2022 AU Symphonic Band poster design.

Pam Nadell (History) received a National Endowment for the Humanities Public Scholars Award for her work on her current book project: Antisemitism, an American Tradition: A New History (1654-Today), to be published by W.W. Norton.

Thurka Sangaramoorthy (Anthropology) spoke with New Books in Anthropology Podcast about her new book Landscapes of Care: Immigration and Health in Rural America (UNC Press, 2023). She also wrote an article for The Conversation about challenges faced by immigrants in the Eastern Shore of Maryland. 

David Vine (Anthropology) published a commentary on “build back better” in The Progressive Magazine.

Tracy Weitz (Sociology) was nominated and appointed to the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine Standing Committee on Reproductive Health, Equity, and Society. Weitz spoke with The 19th about current statewide attacks on abortion rights and accessibility.

July

Will Barnes (Physics) received a $24,870 grant from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the project “Python Development for the CHIANTI Database.”

Laura Beers (History) spoke with USA Today about the importance of President Biden’s visit to the U.K.

Kim Blankenship (Sociology) received supplemental funding in the amount of $39,930 (in addition to previous grant funding of $112,910) from Yale University for the project “The effects of rental assistance on type 2 diabetes self-management and control.”

Boncho Bonev (Physics) received supplemental funding of $43,969 (in addition to previous grant funding of $83,657) from the University of Michigan for the project “The Dynamics, Thermodynamics and Composition of the Cometary Coma.” He also received supplemental funding of $64,734 (in addition to previous grant funding of $134,013) from Johns Hopkins University for the project “A comparative study of how ices are stored in cometary nuclei.”

John Bracht (Biology) received supplemental funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for two projects: $313,603 (in addition to previous funding of $425,184) for “Investigating the molecular basis of evolved stress resilience in a subterrestrial nematode,” and $95,955 (in addition to previous funding of $738,787) for “Investigating the molecular basis of evolved stress resilience in a subterrestrial nematode.” 

Frederick Brauweiler (Physics) received supplemental funding of $44,942.50 (in addition to prior funding of $590,827.96) from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the project “Developing Technologies for Instruments to Study High-Energy Processes in the Solar Atmosphere.”

Orisanmi Burton (Anthropology) spoke with The Black Agenda about his new book Tip of the Spear: Black Radicalism, Prison Repression, and the Long Attica Revolt, (University of California Press, 2023). 

Amos Golan (Economics) received supplemental funding of $7,000 (in addition to previous grant funding of $53,114) from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) for the project “The Value of Publicly Available Information and Data.”

Taisuke Izumi (Biology) received a $289,015 grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for the project “Role of canonical and non-canonical beta-catenin signaling in HIV-1 latency.”

Philip Johnson (Physics) received supplemental funding of $240,100.70 (in addition to previous funding of $159,129) from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the project “Research on the Causes and Consequences of Ionospheric Outflow.”

Philip Johnson (Physics) received a $146,874 grant from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the project “JWST Observations of Solar System Objects.”

David Kearns (Psychology) received supplemental funding of $320,262 (in addition to prior funding of $320,305) from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for the project “Opioid and Psychostimulant Taking: Testing the Impact of Behavioral Economic Contexts.”

Daniel Kerr (History) received a $750,000 grant from The Mellon Foundation for the project “Phase II - Humanities Truck Project.”

Peter Kuznick (History) spoke with WION News, acTVism Munich, CGTN, Izvestia, TV India, TVC, RTVI, The New York Times, The Associated Press, and The Japan Times about a variety of topics ranging from nuclear weapons history to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Allan Lichtman (History) spoke with The Hill about the flaws with the Republican Party’s priorities.

Pamela Nadell (History, Jewish Studies Program) spoke with The Times of Israel about the history of Jewish women labor activists. 

Jack Rasmussen (AU Museum) received a $10,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) for the project “Sustaining the Heritage of the Corcoran Legacy Collection at American University.”

Christina Riley (CRGC) weighed in on a Jezebel article about the “Unsettling Rise of the Anti-Pick Me Girl.”

Thunk Sangaramoorthy (Anthropology) received a $19,069 grant from the University of Maryland for the project “Research Employing Environmental Systems and Occupational Health Policy Analyses to Interrupt the Impact of Structural Racism on Agricultural Workers and Their Respiratory Health (RESPIRAR).”

Daniel Sayers (Anthropology) spoke with The New Yorker for an article about the history of the Maroons — formerly enslaved Africans who fled slavery and lived in swamps and harsh wilderness areas.

Lauren Strauss (Jewish Studies, History) spoke to Washington Jewish Week about the tragedies remembered during Tisha B’Av.

Shubha Pathak (Philosophy and Religion) published an article titled “Shifting Śāstric Śiva: Co-operating Epic Mythology and Philosophy in India’s Classical Period,” International Journal of Hindu Studies 27, no. 2: 173–212.

Jonathan Tubman (Psychology) published two articles, “Multivariate Patterns of Substance Use, Minority Stress and Environmental Violence Associated with Sexual Revictimization of Lesbian and Bisexual Emerging Adult Women" and “Early Screening for Adolescent Substance Use Promotes Social Justice.”

June

Valentina Aquila (Environmental Science) received an $85,388 grant from NASA for the project “Estimating the impacts of volcanic aerosol and pyroCb smoke on model forecasts and data assimilation using the GEOS Analysis Increments.” Professor Aquila was also featured in USA Today in a segment on East Coast air quality related to the Canadian wildfires.

Dan Arbell (scholar-in-residence, Meltzer Schwartzberg Center for Israeli Studies) spoke with HAARETZ about the struggles Israeli immigrants face integrating into America.

Frederick Bruhweiler (Physics) received two grants in the amount of $260,000 and $33,956 (in addition to prior funding in the amount of $1,104,680) from NASA for the project “Advanced Development of IR and Visible Array Spectrometers and Imagers for Ground-based and Space-borne Planetary Observations.”

Nathan Harshman (Physics) received an $800,000 grant (in addition to prior funding in the amount of $2,450,858) from NASA for the project "District of Columbia Space Grant Consortium Budget Proposal for National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program: Opportunities in NASA STEM FY 2020-2024.”

Matthew Hartings (Chemistry) spoke with NPR about summer barbeque, the chemistry of cooking meat, and his book “Chemistry in Your Kitchen.” (Royal Society of Chemistry, 2016)

Philip Johnson (Physics) received a grant from NASA for the project "JWST Observations of Solar System Objects.”

Judd King (Philosophy and Religion) spoke with CNN about the history of political polarization in Turkey.

Professors Ara Koh and Matthew Russo (Studio Art) are featured in the current Kreeger Museum exhibition Doing the Work, presented in collaboration with Hamiltonian Artists.

Peter Kuznick (History) spoke with NTV, Times Now India, CNN, WION News, RTVI, Republic TV, Ren TV, and the New York Times about a variety of topics ranging from Donald Trump to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Allan Lichtman (History) spoke with Raw Story about the possible outcomes of Trump’s indictment.

Stephen MacAvoy (Environmental Science) received a $17,000 grant from Cave Conservancy of the Virginias for the project “Assessing seep amphipod and isopod resilience to environmental warming by metabolic plasticity proxy.”

Amin Mohseni-Cheraghlou (Economics) spoke with Inside Higher Ed about Iran’s high unemployment rate.

Jessica Owens-Young (Health Studies) was the highlight of The Science Coalition's week-long Pride Month feature.

Gautham Rao (History) authored an article for CNN about the historical context behind Trump’s actions.

Thurka Sangaramoorthy (Anthropology) received a grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) via the University of Maryland for the project “Research Employing Environmental Systems and Occupational Health Policy Analyses to Interrupt the Impact of Structural Racism on Agricultural Workers and Their Respiratory Health (RESPIRAR).”

Rachel Louise Snyder (Literature) spoke with 1A about her new book “Women We Buried, Women We Burned” (Bloomsbury, 2019). Her book was also reviewed in The New York Times and featured on the front page of the New York Times Sunday Book Review.

David Vine (Anthropology) spoke with The Hill about his research into overseas military bases.

Jon D. Wisman (Economics) appeared on the Legal-Economic Nexus podcast, discussing a variety of topics including his new book, “The Origins and Dynamics of Inequality.” (Oxford University Press, 2022)

May

Vladimir Airapetian (Physics) and his research on the role of the young Sun to the origin of life was the subject of a NASA press release

Valentina Aquila (Environmental Science) received a grant from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the project titled "Estimating the impacts of volcanic aerosol and pyroCb smoke on model forecasts and data assimilation using the GEOS Analysis Increments.”

Laura Beers (History) spoke with BBC News about President Biden not attending the coronation of King Charles. She also authored an article on CNN about Britain’s response to the coronation.

Meg Bentley (Biology) received a $12,626 grant from the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory for the project titled “Circuit Program 2023 (Rohan Singh).”

Robert Blecker (Economics) received the William M. LeoGrande Award Honorable Mention for his book chapter titled “Mexico: Unequal Integration and ‘Stabilizing Stagnation.’”

Zois Boukouvalas (Mathematics and Statistics) received a $54,950 grant (in addition to previous funding in the amount of $200,000) from the Energetics Technology Center for the project titled “Data-Driven Multi-modal Fusion for the Analysis of Energetic Material Systems.”

Ernesto Castañeda (Sociology, Center for Latin American and Latino Studies) spoke with Newsweek about the end of Title 42.

Matt Hartings (Chemistry) made an appearance on NPR’s All Things Considered on the topic of “the art and science of cooking low and slow barbecue.”

Philip Johnson (Physics) received a $127,500 grant (in addition to previous funding in the amount of $29,199.21) from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the project titled “Modeling of Exoplanet Atmospheres and Climates.”

Pankaj Kumar (Physics) received an $83,946 grant from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) for the project titled “Grant - Single Source, Observational Studies of the Formation and Eruption of Solar Filament Channels.”

Caroline Kuo (Health Studies) received a $684,756 grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for the project titled “Testing the Efficacy of Safe South Africa: An Intervention to Prevent HIV Risk and Interpersonal Violence Among Adolescent Boys.”

Peter Kuznick (History) spoke with WION TV India, RTVI, Channel One Russia, CGTN, NTV Russian Television, TVC, and REN TV Russia about a variety of topics ranging from the upcoming G7 summit in Japan to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Allan Lichtman (History) spoke with Gray DC about the rise of third-party candidates in American politics.

Jewish News Syndicate story highlighted the multimillion dollar gift by alum Alan Meltzer and his wife Amy, and Jaime and Andrew Schwartzberg, to American University’s Center for Israel Studies. The Center has been named the Meltzer Schwartzberg Center for Israel Studies.

Pamela Nadell (History, Jewish Studies Program) spoke with The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette about the politics of antisemitism in America. Nadell also authored an article for The Conversation about the history of antisemitism in the United States and the government’s plans to combat antisemitism.

Jessica Owens-Young (Health Studies) spoke with The Washington Post for a story about new research findings on health disparities and inequity.

Stacey Snelling (Health Studies) was featured as one of the Top Women Scholars in health promotion by the American Journal of Health Promotion (AJHP).

Rachel Louise Snyder (Literature) wrote an opinion for The New York Times based on her forthcoming memoir, “Women We Buried, Women We Burned” (Bloomsbury, 2023). Her work was also excerpted in an article in The New Yorker’s new online series “The Saturday Essay.”

Tracy Weitz (Sociology, Center for Health, Risk and Society) spoke with The New Yorker about Planned Parenthood’s focus on self-preservation and its impact on the pro-choice movement.

April

Kim Blankenship (Sociology) received a grant from the George Washington University for the project, “Latino Scholars in HIV/AIDS Research Education (SHARE).”

Michael Brenner (Center for Israel Studies) was appointed to the newly established historians’ commission to reappraise the attack at the Munich Olympics in 1972 as the only historian in the US.

Stephen Dashiell (postdoctoral fellow, Sociology) authored an article for The Conversation about the controversy surrounding the computer game “Hogwarts Legacy” and his research into gaming subcultures.

Andrew Demshuk (History) received the highly prestigious Alice Davis Hitchcock Book Award from the Society of Architectural Historians for his book Three Cities after Hitler: Redemptive Reconstruction across Cold War Borders (University of Pittsburgh Press, 2022).

Lily Duboff (CAS undergrad) received the American University 2023 Scott A. Bass Outstanding Scholarship at the Undergraduate Level Award.

Jessica Emami (Sociology), spoke with PolitiFact about the dangers of attributing the actions of one person to a whole community. She noted that many recent mass shootings have been perpetrated by lone actors, rather than organized groups, and warned against generalizing the actions of one person to a whole group.

Jessica Gephart (Environmental Science) received a $47,739 grant from CGIAR for the project, “Identifying trade-offs in food systems.”

Ignacio González Garcia (Economics) received the 2023 Outstanding Contribution to Fostering Collaborative Scholarship Award at the American University Faculty Recognition Dinner.

Nathaniel Herr (Psychology) received the 2023 Outstanding Teaching in a Full-Time, Tenure-Line Appointment Award at the American University Faculty Recognition Dinner.

Maurizio Recordati Koen (History doctoral candidate) won the 2022 Trench Gascoigne essay competition for "The Stuff of Strategy: How Sublime Strategics Turned into a Real Thing" in RUSI Journal.

Peter Kuznick (History) spoke to WION News, Izvestia Media, RTVI, NTV Russian TV, and REN TV about a variety of topics ranging from the ongoing conflict in Ukraine to US foreign policy. Kuznick also spoke with The Hill about the concerns Americans have about nuclear war.

Michele Lansigan (Chemistry) was selected as the winner of this year’s Green Teacher of the Year Award by a committee of CTRL and the Office of Sustainability Staff.

Jon D. Wisman (Economics) received the 2023 Scholar/Teacher of the Year Award at the American University Faculty Recognition Dinner.

March

Mike Alonzo (Environmental Science) was featured in an Inside Climate News story about local climate change. 

Dan Arbell (History) spoke with BBC World News about the proposed judicial reforms in Israel and the protests that followed. 

Barbara Balestra and Jesse Meiller (Environmental Science) spoke with The Straits Times about her research into microplastics found in several tributaries of the Anacostia River. 

Mali Collins (CRGC) won an ACLS fellowship for her book project Scrap Theory: Reproductive Injustice in the Black Feminist Imagination.

Victoria Connaughton (Biology) received a grant from the University of the District of Columbia (UDC) for the project “Assessing cellular mechanisms underlying behavioral changes in larval fish raised in Anacostia River water.”

Jessica Emami (Sociology) spoke with The Jerusalem Post about the impact of Iranian-backed militia groups in Iraq. 

Jessica Gephart (Environmental Science) received a $11,006 grant from Multiplier for the project titled “ARTEMIS Database Update.”

Zoltan Gluck (Anthropology) co-authored an article for The Conversation about police extortion and brutality in Kenya. 

Silvina Guidoni (Physics) received a $29,932 grant from NASA for the project “Connecting The Origins of Flux-Ropes In The Lower Corona With Their Evolution Heliosphere.”

Caroline Kuo (Health Studies) received a grant from Brown University for the project “Our Family Our Future: A resilience-oriented family intervention to prevent adolescent HIV/STI infection and depression in South Africa.”

Peter Kuznick (History) spoke with WION News, CGTN Europe, Russian Television (Soloviev LIVE), BBC, Faculti, RTVI, Izvestia Media, acTVism Munich, Republic Media Network India, NTV Russian Television, and TVC about a variety of topics ranging from China, Russia, and Ukraine to US foreign policy. 

Chenxi Liao’s (Neuroscience PhD candidate ) article, "Unsupervised learning reveals interpretable latent representations for translucency perception," is the cover story for PLOS Computational Biology.

Dennis Lucarelli (Physics) received a $32,088 grant (incrementally funded for a total of $63,241) from Dartmouth College for the project “Quantum Characterization and Model Reduction for Fault-Tolerant Quabit Networks.” 

Dolen Perkins-Valdez (Literature) won the 2023 NAACP Image Award for fiction for her most recent novel, Take My Hand

Michael Robinson (Mathematics and Statistics) received a $120,000 grant from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) for the project “Modeling and Analytic Capabilities for KBase.”

Theresa Runstedtler, (History) spoke to The Los Angeles Times about her new book Black Ball: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Spencer Haywood, and the Generation That Saved the Soul of the NBA (Bold Type Books). Her book was also reviewed by The New Yorker.

Andrew Taylor (Arts Management) was recently appointed a co-editor of Artivate: A Journal of Entrepreneurship in the Arts

Jon D. Wisman (Economics) published “Why Ideology Exists” in the Journal of Economic Issues.

Buck Woodard (Anthropology) was invited by Catholic University’s Department of Anthropology to give this year’s Regina Flannery Herzfeld Symposium keynote address, an annual symposium lecture on the Cultural Heritage of Native America. 

Naoco Wowsugi (Art) was one of the organizers for the symposium How Can We Gather Now held at Eaton Elementary in DC and presented by the Washington Project for the Arts. Wowsugi’s presentations highlight her research on inclusive community building and fortifying local culture through art.

Bei Xiao (Computer Science) received a $420,538 grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for the project “Learning diagnostic latent representations for human material perception: common mechanisms and individual variability.”

February

Naomi Baron (World Languages and Cultures, professor emerita) spoke with NBC 4 and CNBC about the impact of ChatGPT and other AI tools on education.

Raychelle Burks (Chemistry) received the Research Corporation for Science Advancement's inaugural Robert Holland Jr. Award for Research Excellence and Contributions to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.

Alorie Clark (Arts Management, alumna) was appointed executive director of the DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative.

Robert Connelly (CRGC) is serving as the dramaturg for the St. Mark’s Players' production of Perfect Arrangement, a play about two closeted US State Department employees struggling to maintain their cover during the “Lavender Scare” of the early 1950s. Perfect Arrangement is directed by AU alumna Heather Danskin.

Ellen Feder (Philosophy and Religion) shared her expertise in a USA Today article on shoplifting and ethics.

Zoltan Gluck (Anthropology) was appointed as a lead researcher for the African Cities Research Consortium (a six-year, £32 million project based at the University of Manchester and funded by the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office) to co-direct research safety and security in Nairobi, Kenya, with the goal of helping improve the living conditions, services, and life chances of Nairobi city residents, particularly for disadvantaged communities.

Ignacio Gonzalez-Garcia (Economics) received supplemental funding in the amount of $150,000 on a grant from the New Venture Fund, bringing the total to $748,097 to date. The grant supports his project “Aggregate, Sectorial and Distributional Effects of Corporate Taxation.”

Peter Kuznick (History) spoke with WION News, Channel One Russia, Izvestia, Zvezda, RTVI, TVC, NTV Russian Television, CGTN, and Faculti about a variety of topics, ranging from President Biden’s State of the Union address to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Allan Lichtman (History) gave an extensive Faculti interview discussing the most vulnerable areas in US democracy and explaining in historical context how President Trump exploited these weak spots.

Stephen MacAvoy (Environmental Science) received a $15,000 grant from the University of the District of Columbia (UDC) for the project “Emerging pollutants in the Anacostia River: Determining concentration of siloxanes (D4, D5, D6, and 2.4.6.8) and specific PAHs.”

Patricia Park (Literature) published the young adult novel Imposter Syndrome and Other Confessions of Alejandra Kim with Random Penguin House.

Isabel Rivero-Vilá (World Languages and Cultures) has been named "Chevalier dans l'ordre des Palmes académiques" by the Ministère français de l'Éducation nationale.

Thurka Sangaramoorthy (Anthropology) published "A multinational Delphi consensus to end the COVID-19 public health threat" in Nature. She published a chapter titled "Marcellus Shale Public Health Study" in Profiles of Anthropological Praxis: An International Casebook (Berghahn Books, 2022). She also published "Teaching Ethnographic Methods: The State of the Art" in the Human Organization journal.

David Vazquez (Literature, CRGC) contributed to the response article What the New York Times Gets Wrong about the ‘American Dirt’ controversy in Salon.

Jon D. Wisman (Economics) gave an extensive interview on Faculti on his book, The Origins and Dynamics of Inequality: Sex, Politics, and Ideology (Oxford University Press, 2022).

January

Daniel Abraham (Music) released a CD, ALTISSIMA: Works for High Baroque Trumpet, a collaboration with trumpeter Josh Cohen. The CD was reviewed by the Cumbria Times, three BBC radio programs, and reached no. 7 on the UK Classical Lists, (specialist classical charts).

Nicole Angotti (Sociology) received a $176,677 grant (funded over two years for a total of $367,138) from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for the project titled “Intergeneration Intervention: Employing Youth to Promote Aging Healthy with HIV in Rural South Africa.”

Naomi S. Baron (professor emerita, World Languages and Cultures) wrote an article for The Conversation about the impact ChatGPT will have on student motivation.

Laura Beers (History) spoke with CGTN about the challenges that will be faced by the United Kingdom in 2023.

Michael Brenner (Center for Israel Studies) wrote an article for The Conversation about Israel’s new right-wing and religious government. He also wrote an article for Moment Magazine marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Ernesto Castaneda (Sociology) appeared in TV interviews on NTN24 Bogotá, France24, Alhurra TV, and NBC News Now. He was interviewed/quoted in articles by Edición USA, NBC 24 News, ABC7 News, KSNV News, Fox11News, Katu2ABC, Kalamazoo News, and Think GlobalClobal Health, for contributions on a variety of topics related to immigration, Latin America, and the North American Leaders’ Summit. 

Ying Chen-Peng’s (Art History) book Artful Subversion Empress Dowager Cixi's Image Making was published by Yale University Press.

Philip Johnson (Physics) received a $29,199 grant (funded over three years for a total of $887,417) from NASA for the project titled “Modeling of Exoplanet Atmospheres and Climates.”

Karen Knee (Environmental Science) spoke with WUSA about the science behind the efficacy of salt in melting ice during freezing temperatures.

Peter Kuznick (History) spoke with Faculti UK, RT, NYU Special Collections Library, RTVI, Postscript TVC, WION News, India TV, NTV Russian Television, acTVism Munich, and Iran Daily about a variety of topics ranging from political activism in history to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Allan Lichtman (History) spoke with The Hill about the possibility of President Biden running for reelection.

Danielle Mysliwiec’s (Art) exhibition Pull at COUNTY, a gallery in Palm Beach, FL, closed on January 31. Mysliwiec gave an interview with Maake Magazine about the exhibit.

Jin Y. Park (Philosophy and Religion) was awarded the Uberoi Foundation Religious Studies Grant of $20,000 for a project on Buddhism and Nonviolence.

Shubha Pathak (Philosophy and Religion) published an article on “Demonic and Demidivine Beauty in the Eyes of the Demidivine and Demonic Beholders” in the Religions of South Asia (ROSA) journal. 

Aaron Posner (Theatre) spoke with Politico about the Shakespearean tragedy of Kevin McCarthy's contentious Speaker of the House confirmation.

Evan Reister (Health Studies) spoke with The Cut about the efficacy of greens-powder supplements.

Stacey Snelling (Health Studies) received a $50,000 grant from DC Central Kitchen for the project titled “Healthy Corners Program Evaluation.” Snelling also received $125,000 for the project “Food Matters: Nourishing the Body and Soul” and $199,488 for the project “Health Literacy in DC,” both from the DC Department of Health.

Nancy Snider (Performing Arts) received a $10,000 grant from the Marinus and Minna B. Koster Foundation for the project titled “Koster Foundation 2023 Study Grants for Music Majors.”

Ricardo Torres (Economics) spoke with The Associated Press about the Cuban government’s response to the country’s food shortages. 

David Vine (Anthropology) received a $10,000 grant from the Jubitz Family Foundation for the project titled “Strategy Summit to Dismantle the Military Industrial Complex.”

Andrew Wasserman (Art History) published the article “And the Mural Came Down: Race, Removal, and Reckoning in the Sunshine City,” in The Art Bulletin 104, no. 4 (December 2022).

Jon D. Wisman (Economics) was awarded as Winner of the 2023 Veblen-Commons Award, the highest honor given annually by the Association for Evolutionary Economics (AFEE) at the Allied Social Science Association Meetings in New Orleans, in recognition of significant contributions to evolutionary institutional economics. 

Xiaoquan Zhang (World Languages and Cultures) spoke with USA Today about the cultural significance of the Chinese Lunar New Year.

 

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