Press Releases in August, 2011 | Brown University News and Events

Wake up and go to sleep!

Freshmen face sleep problems; education helps

Sleep often suffers in a student’s freshman year, but a new study finds that young college students may think their sleep quality is better than it is. The study also demonstrates that a low-cost campuswide media campaign can help some students sleep better and suggests that discussing sleep problems may be a gateway for college health providers to address more sensitive problems. (Distributed August 30, 2011)

The 248th Opening Convocation

Provost Schlissel to address Brown's newest students

And they’re off!: As last year’s entering students did, the undergraduate Class of 2015
and new graduate and medical students will make their ceremonial entry
through the Van Wickle Gates on Wednesday afternoon.

Mark S. Schlissel, who has begun his first full academic year at Brown's 11th provost, will deliver the Opening Convocation address to the undergraduate, graduate, and medical students who are beginning their studies at Brown. The ceremony, available live online, begins at 4 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011, on the College Green. (Distributed August 30, 2011)

Brown prepares for Hurricane Irene

As University facilities staff and other employees began to prepare the Brown campus for high winds and heavy rain expected with Hurricane Irene this weekend, the University sent the following message to all members of the campus community. (Distributed August 25, 2011)

Nickel nanoparticles may contribute to lung cancer

Now you see it, now you don’t: When human lung epithelial cells are exposed to equivalent doses of nano-sized (left) or micro-sized (right) metallic nickel particles, activated HIF-1 alpha pathways (stained green) appear mostly with the nanoparticles.

Lab experiments find that nickel particles with diameters billionths of a meter wide can trigger a cellular pathway that promotes cancer growth. (Distributed August 23, 2011)

September 3 through November 6

Visions of the future open Bell Gallery's season

Where will it all end?: Hugh Ferriss, Popular Mechanics Magazine, March 1938. Offset lithography, 9.5 x 6.5 inches. Private Collection

Opening the 2011-12 season at the Bell Gallery, Building Expectation: Past and Present Visions of the Architectural Future features a collection of historic and ongoing visions of the architectural future. Architecture “has always been one of the future’s most revealing and recognizable features.” (Distributed August 22, 2011)

Grand Opening

Alpert Medical School opens in Jewelry District

The new 134,000-square-foot home of the Warren Alpert Medical School allows the M.D. class size to expand by 20 percent and provides educational enhancements and student amenities, including new infrastructure for electronic information access. At the grand opening today, elected officials joined Brown officers in celebrating the building, which is built to meet LEED Gold environmental sustainability standards, for its potential to accelerate the local and state economy. (See fact sheet on the construction project.) (Distributed August 15, 2011)

Software predicted virus risk in California epidemic

Predicting an epidemic in California: Using data on the incubation of West Nile virus, the life cycle of mosquitoes, and the flight of birds, DYCAST software successfully predicted where human infections would occur.

A computer model of the spread of West Nile virus was able to predict areas where human cases would be concentrated, especially around Sacramento in 2005. The success of the model, say researchers, depended on its focus on biological factors and on a high volume of reports from members of the public. (Distributed August 11, 2011)

News Advisory

Brown to open new home for Alpert Medical School

City, state, and federal leaders will join Brown President Ruth J. Simmons and Dean of Medicine and Biological Sciences Edward Wing at the formal opening of the new medical education building of the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University on Aug. 15, 2011, the first day of classes. (See fact sheet on the construction project.) (Distributed August 10, 2011)

Adverse childhood could raise adult heart disease risk

Eric Loucks: The early family psychosocial environment influences the mental health of kids, but it could also be a factor in adult chronic diseases.

The risk of coronary heart disease in middle age is moderately higher for men and women who grew up in adverse family settings, according to a new analysis of medical records and surveys of more than 3,500 people. (Distributed August 1, 2011)