Dr. Selim Suner, a professor of emergency medicine, surgery and engineering, was a 9/11 first responder and has since studied the health of other responders. When the federal government recently announced that treatment of several cancers would now qualify for benefits under the World Trade Center Health Program, Suner said he was not surprised. Many suspected a possible link between cancer and the airborne particulates of World Trade Center debris long before yesterday's formal acknowledgement. (Distributed September 11, 2012)

Due to the threat of heavy rain and lightning, Brown University’s 249th Opening Convocation met in the Pizzitola Sports Center at 4 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2012. Christina Paxson, Brown’s 19th president, formally opened her inaugural academic year and delivered the Opening Convocation Address titled “Constructive Irreverence.” The text of President Paxson’s convocation address follows here. A video of the speech is also available online. (Distributed September 5, 2012)

Back-to-school time for many U.S. high school students may mean heading back into a Catch-22 of sleep. Teens are naturally inclined to stay up late, but are forced to wake up early, says Mary Carskadon, professor of psychiatry and human behavior and a noted advocate of later school starting times. (Distributed September 5, 2012)

Dropping a child at college can be a difficult and exciting experience for parent and child undergrad alike, as it marks a new chapter in everyone’s lives. Sherri Nelson, associate director of psychological services at Brown University, offered some advice for parents and new students on how to say goodbye in a positive way and help ease the transition for what may be their biggest goodbye to date. (Distributed August 31, 2012)

A recent review of research co-authored by Rose McDermott highlights the role that genes play in political preferences, an area of study that began to draw significant attention in the last decade. McDermott speaks with Courtney Coelho about this growing field of research, its evolutionary roots, and whether it means anything for the prediction of future election results. (Distributed August 29, 2012)

Brown University will hold the last in a series of outdoor movies on Tuesday August 28, 2012 at 7:30 p.m. at the Granoff Center Amphitheater. The movie is free and open to the public. (Distributed August 24, 2012)

In Defending the Filibuster: The Soul of the Senate, political scientists and former Senate staffers Richard Arenberg and Robert Dove argue that the solution to recent criticism of the filibuster is not to do away with it. Arenberg speaks with Courtney Coelho about the history of Senate debate, how its use has been distorted in recent years and why reforms, not abolishment, are key to preserving Senate minority rights.  (Distributed August 23, 2012)