News Archives

Robert Hughes on Goya

With characteristic wry humor and eloquence, art critic Robert Hughes, standing before a packed Irvine Auditorium on April 7, argued that the work of Spanish painter Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes still speaks with urgency, even 175 years after his death. With the help of slides—from Goya’s early portraits of royalty through to his late “Black Paintings”—Hughes outlined the artist’s life, its relationship to his art and how he was influenced by both war and illness.

Spitzer puts America in touch with its routes

Folklorist Nick Spitzer C’72’s melodic baritone hints at the places he’s lived. There’s a touch of New Orleans twang by way of Texas, and a quickness of speech that blends the cadences of Philadelphia and his hometown of Old Lyme, Connecticut. So, it’s only fitting that each week on WHYY-FM, it’s Spitzer’s richly toned voice that leads listeners on a musical journey around the country.

Camps sharpen athletic skills, offer summer fun  

The weather’s getting warmer and the school year is winding down, which means it’s time to ask: What will your children be doing this summer? How about giving them a chance to sharpen their athletic skills in one of the many summer camps sponsored by Penn’s athletic teams? Or, if they’re not budding pro athletes, the PennKids summer camp offers children the chance to discover the world around them and engage in fun recreational activities.

Out & About: Drawing their own conclusions

The exhibit now up on the walls of the Arthur Ross Gallery brings to Penn some remarkable drawings by 19th-century art stars like Degas, Cezanne and Ingres. Even more remarkable, perhaps, is the fact that it’s here at all.

From smaller jaws to larger brains?

Associate Professor of Surgery Hansell Stedman has discovered a clue that may help solve a long-running evolutionary puzzle—how the brain was able to expand, thus distinguishing humans from their primate predecessors. He and his colleagues in the School of Medicine have found a genetic mutation that makes the jaw muscles of humans significantly smaller and weaker than those of primates. Since news of the discovery appeared in the March issue of Nature, media outlets worldwide have trumpeted the find as the “missing link” between apes and humans.

News briefs

Penn goes postal

At Work With...Herb White

Should I stay or should I go?  

Our civic leaders are quite concerned about the city’s brain drain and have launched a slew of efforts—from luring “The Real World” here to promoting the city’s nightlife—aimed at encouraging students to come here and, more importantly, stay after they graduate. Judging from the responses we got to the question “Do you plan to stay in Philadelphia after you graduate?” the solution is simple: Hire them, and they’ll stay.

Frank Furstenberg Awarded Fulbright to Uruguay

PHILADELPHIA -- Frank Furstenberg, professor of sociology at the University of Pennsylvania, has received a Fulbright Senior Specialists grant in sociology to work in Uruguay.Furstenberg will spend two weeks lecturing at Uruguay's Instituto de Economa and planning a study, "Family Change in the Southern Cone Nations."

McCullough tells what it takes to lead

Two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author and Emmy-winning host David McCullough joined a capacity crowd at Irvine Auditorium to celebrate this year’s School of Arts and Sciences Dean’s Scholars on March 31. McCullough, the speaker for this year’s Dean’s Forum, talked about leadership, reminding the audience that history is never a foregone conclusion. In his words: “Nothing had to happen the way it actually happened.”