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  • Nation & World

    Money spent on others can buy happiness

    New research by one Harvard scholar implies that happiness can be found by spending money on others. Michael Norton, assistant professor of business administration in the marketing unit at the Harvard Business School (HBS), conducted a series of studies with his colleagues Elizabeth Dunn and Lara Aknin at the University of British Columbia (UBC).

  • Health

    Nobel Prize winner discusses judgment and intuition

    “Most of the time,” said noted psychologist and Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman to a packed house of students, scholars, and faculty at the Yenching Auditorium (April 15), “we run at very low effort.” It was a sobering claim for the heady academic set, but according to Kahneman, no one is immune from the diagnosis. Even…

  • Campus & Community

    Digging spoons: GSD café has tableware fit for composting

    Beginning earlier in the spring semester, the Chauhaus café at the Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD) started providing only tableware made from bio-based plastics fit for composting.

  • Campus & Community

    Going for the green at Harvard

    William James Hall and the Hoffman Labs have emerged victorious in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) Environmental Competition 2008, Harvard’s biggest and most comprehensive eco-contest ever.

  • Health

    Genetics key in new knowledge about complex diseases

    Genetic researchers crossed a critical threshold last year in their ability to understand complex diseases, posting a number of new discoveries that advanced knowledge of ailments caused by small contributions from multiple genes, the environment, and other causes.

  • Health

    Haiti clinic makes real gains

    “13 October 2003.” Saintyl Louistess remembered the exact date she found out she had AIDS.

  • Health

    Elevated urate levels may slow progression of Parkinson’s disease

    Naturally elevated levels of the antioxidant urate may slow the progression of Parkinson’s disease in men.  Researchers from the MassGeneral Institute for Neurodegenerative Disease (MGH-MIND) and Harvard School of Public…

  • Campus & Community

    Mora to step down as vice president for finance

    Elizabeth Mora, a senior member of the University’s financial administration since 1997, today (April 15) announced her intention to step down as vice president for finance and chief financial officer.

  • Nation & World

    Botswana-Harvard Partnership

    The BHP, under the direction of Dr. Max Essex, focuses on research into a cure for HIV/AIDS.

  • Nation & World

    Film insists U.S. educational system is in critical condition

    Last month Bill Gates warned Congress that the United States is dangerously close to losing its competitive edge due to a serious shortage of scientists and engineers. The problem required in part, said the Microsoft founder, a revamping of the country’s educational system.

  • Campus & Community

    HLS’s East Asian Legal Studies accepting submissions

    The East Asian Legal Studies (EALS) program at Harvard Law School (HLS) is accepting submissions of papers for the Yong K. Kim ’95 Memorial Prize. The prize is awarded to the author of the best paper concerning the law or legal history of the nations and peoples of East Asia or concerning issues of law…

  • Campus & Community

    This month in Harvard history

    April 17, 1893 – April 9, 1956

  • Campus & Community

    Police reports

    Following are some of the incidents reported to the Harvard University Police Department (HUPD) for the week ending March 3. The official log is located at 1033 Massachusetts Ave., sixth floor, and is available online at http://www.hupd.harvard.edu/.

  • Campus & Community

    Newsmakers

    HBS’S LAURA ALFARO NAMED YOUNG GLOBAL LEADER MELTON TO RECEIVE DIABETES CHAMPION AWARD NATIONAL PARKS GROUP TO HONOR E.O. WILSON

  • Campus & Community

    DRCLAS names Robert F. Kennedy Visiting Professor

    The Harvard University David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies has named distinguished journalist and Hispanic publisher Edward Schumacher-Matos the Robert F. Kennedy Visiting Professor for Latin American Studies.

  • Campus & Community

    Eleven HILR students honored for dedication

    University Marshal Jackie O’Neill honored 11 members of the Harvard Institute for Learning in Retirement (HILR) last week for their dedication to lifelong learning. The April 4 ceremony was held at the Harvard Faculty Club and was attended by friends and family of the honorees, who are all near or actual nonagenarians. Also in attendance…

  • Campus & Community

    IOP introduces spring fellows for 2008

    Harvard University’s Institute of Politics (IOP) at the Harvard Kennedy School has announced its visiting fellows for spring 2008. The three fellows are Elizabeth Edwards, author and political advocate; Vaira Vike-Freiberga, former president of the Republic of Latvia; and Andrew White, president and CEO of the Foundation for Relief and Reconciliation in the Middle East.

  • Campus & Community

    Steven Oliveira named HLS associate dean and dean for development

    Steven Oliveira, an accomplished university advancement professional with more than 23 years of experience, has joined Harvard Law School (HLS) as associate dean and dean for development and alumni relations. Oliveira brings a wide range of relevant experience to his new position, including senior positions at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Virginia, and…

  • Campus & Community

    Sports in brief

    Shore shot: Junior golfer shines at Yale Open; Heavyweight men take first, third at California Regatta; Ancient Eight honors freshman attacker as Rookie of the Week

  • Campus & Community

    Big Red bedevil lacrosse

    It was a big day for the Harvard men’s lacrosse team this past Saturday (April 5). The Crimson club, after all, was in the enviable position of playing the first-ever lacrosse game at Foxborough’s Gillette Stadium (along with league rival Cornell). There, in the enormous 68,000-seat venue, Harvard and Cornell attracted 2,705 lacrosse fans —…

  • Campus & Community

    Free flu shots still available

    With the flu season often lasting through April, there is still plenty of time and good reason to get immunized if you have not already. Following immunization, it takes approximately10 days to develop antibodies and be protected.

  • Campus & Community

    Thoughtful House renovation planned

    More than bricks and beams, it is the people of the 12 undergraduate residential Houses who make the structure of residential life at Harvard transformational, complex, and robust. So, when the Faculty of Arts and Sciences decided to invest in student life by renovating the Houses, supporting House life was the guide for reinforcing and…

  • Health

    Less sleep, more TV leads to fat toddlers

    Infants and toddlers who sleep less than 12 hours a day are twice as likely to become overweight by age 3 than children who sleep longer. In addition, high levels of television viewing combined with less sleep elevate the risk, so that children who sleep less than 12 hours and who view two or more…

  • Health

    Potent new strategy for mapping animal species shakes up tree of life

    Since the 1859 publication of Charles Darwin’s “Origin of Species,” efforts to trace evolutionary relationships among different classes of organisms have largely relied on external morphological observations.

  • Campus & Community

    Arnold Arboretum launches SHIP initiative

    Today (April 10) the Arnold Arboretum launched the online component of its SHIP (Seed Herbarium Image Project) initiative, which utilizes high-resolution digital photography to document the morphology of seeds and associated fruit structures. The culmination of more than two years of planning and preparation, the project is a unique digital resource for scientists, horticulturists, and…

  • Science & Tech

    An ocean of bad tidings

    Jeremy B.C. Jackson earned his first chops as a scholar by studying the ecological impacts of an event that unfolded over the last 15 million years: the formation of the Isthmus of Panama, dividing the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and setting off profound evolutionary oceanic and terrestrial changes.

  • Campus & Community

    Astronaut, volunteer Stephanie D. Wilson honored

    NASA astronaut Stephanie D. Wilson ’88 was awarded the Women’s Professional Achievement Award at the 11th annual Harvard College Women’s Leadership Awards ceremony held April 3 at the Charles Hotel in Harvard Square. Additionally, Harvard senior Katherine Beck received the Women’s Leadership Award. Both honors were presented by the Harvard College Women’s Center.

  • Arts & Culture

    Ancient science, modern lens

    Hanging on the wall in Boylston 232, between windows overlooking the southern edge of Tercentenary Theatre, two small photographs present an intricate view of distant, colorful nebulae. Mark Schiefsky, professor of the classics, captured both images with his telescope. He has been revisiting the hobby of astrophotography as of late, an old passion from his…