Andrew Zitcer’s charge as Penn’s Cultural Asset Manager is to look after the real estate in Penn’s portfolio that don’t fall under the traditional headings of commercial, residential or retail spaces.

Heather A. Davis ・ March 30, 2006

Americans aren’t getting any less religious, says Sarah Barringer Gordon. And so, just as it has for all of U.S. history, religion will continue to shape American politics, law and culture. “An open skeptic like Thomas Jefferson ... might have had a hard time in 2000.”

Tim Hyland March 16, 2006

STAFF Q&A/Bob Gutowski shares his love of nature as head of Morris Arboretum’s public programs. “You’ve never seen an evening gown that’s as beautiful as a cedar waxwing.”

Judy Hill March 16, 2006

Q&A/This film scholar and author of a book about Hollywood culture talks about the past and present of the Oscars—and what the future holds for the movie industry. “I think people still like the experience of going to movies. It’s ... a communal experience.”

Heather A. Davis ・ February 23, 2006

STAFF Q&A/Trombonist Michael Ketner is the man behind the curtain at Penn’s Music Department. “These are student groups, but they’re good, and they play at a high level.”

Judy Hill February 23, 2006

February 23, 2006

Q&A/This spring the 6th floor of Van Pelt is celebrating Ben Franklin with an exhibit on Colonial education in the Delaware Valley. We talk to the library staff who brought “Educating the Youth of Pennsylvania” from a rough idea to a fully realized exhibit. “Charter schools today remind me a lot of what was going on during the Colonial period.”

Tim Hyland February 9, 2006

Q&A/Penn Museum’s keeper of physical anthropology talks about scanning mummies, making molds of Neanderthals and why human babies are born so small and helpless. “I’m one of those people who have crazy loves and I have a love for everything about evolution.”

Judy West January 26, 2006

STAFF Q&A/A booster for the local music scene, Maria Tessa Sciarrino can’t get enough of the Philadelphia sound. “I think it’s great that everybody’s getting the attention.” Maria Tessa Sciarrino studied photography in college, but admits she wasn’t the best student: “I was too busy going to concerts.”

Heather A. Davis ・ January 26, 2006

Q&A/After decades of groundbreaking work, linguist William Labov remains at the forefront of his field. His most far-reaching research, a comprehensive atlas of North American English, has just been published. “In almost every language change, there’s something going on underneath the hood.”

Tim Hyland January 12, 2006