3-3:45 pm

Alumni Keynote Address

"What a Difference a Decade Makes…The Internet and Telecomm Revolution"

October 2004 marks the ten-year anniversary of the release of the “Mosaic” browser. The release of that browser heralded the development of the Internet as we know it for consumer and commercial uses and users. Larry Irving reflects on the remarkable economic, societal, political, academic and technological changes resulting from the past decade of technological innovation.

McCormick Auditorium, Norris University Center

4-5 p.m.

Classes Without Quizzes

"Unlocking Screenplays: 4 Act Structure and Beyond"

David Tolchinsky, Associate Professor of Radio/Television/Film; Director, Creative Writing for the Media Program, School of Communication

Writing a feature screenplay seems in some ways overwhelming. How does one begin? How does one "fill" 100 pages? But if one breaks down those 100 pages structurally: Into 4 acts, 12 sequences, and 100 scenes, somehow the task seems doable.

Following concepts introduced in Kristin Thompson's Narrative in the New Hollywood and utilizing a variety of film clips, the session will therefore tackle: What is a scene and how is the scene the key to all structure and all screenwriting? What is a sequence? What constitutes the 4 acts of a screenplay? What really goes on in the middle of the screenplay? How is the power struggle between protagonist and antagonist expressed at the level of the scene, sequence, and act?

Ideally (but not required), participants should come prepared to share their own screenplay story ideas. Warning: Some of the scenes shown in the hour may have a violent or sexual content.

Michigan Room, Norris University Center

"The Sport of Singing"

Karen Brunssen, Associate Professor of Voice; Coordinator, Voice and Opera Program, School of Music

Turning one's voice into a musical instrument requires long, hard training. The complex coordination and muscular development required to achieve a beautiful tone, clear, distinct diction in many languages, flawless musical skills, and the ability to communicate to an audience is a fascinating process. During this "class" you will experience some of the rigors of learning to sing firsthand. Then you will be able to take a rare, inside look as selected Northwestern Vocal Performance students sing for you in a Master Class situation. You will see how they work to improve every aspect of their singing.

Indiana room, Norris University Center

"From Day One: Habits for Success–A Refresher Class"

William J. White (McC61), Professor, Department of Industrial Engineering & Management Sciences, McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science; 2004 NAA Excellence in Teaching Award

This class will review the hypothesis that successful organizations are led by individuals who follow a set of effective behaviors. Some of these unique activities which lead to useful habits can be applied to our everyday living to make us more successful in our endeavors.

Northwestern A room, Norris University Center

"A View of the World From The Whiskers of a Rat"

Mitra J Hartmann, Assistant Professor, Departments of Mechanical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering, McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science

Robots currently excel at repetitive, accurate tasks in highly structured environments. In contrast, animals excel at agile and autonomous movement and in navigating complex and variable environments. To accomplish agile movement, animals must efficiently acquire and refine behaviorally-relevant sensory data, a process sometimes termed“active sensing.” Rats, as nocturnal, burrowing animals, have developed an exquisitely sensitive set of whiskers with which they explore the world around them. By rhythmically brushing their whiskers up against objects, rats are able to extract information about 3-dimensional object features, including size, shape, orientation, and texture.

The rat whisker system is thus an ideal model for studying active sensing. In this talk, Professor Hartmann will describe insights we have gained into the active sensing process using high speed videography to monitor rat head and whisker movements. Our data specifically suggest a candidate mechanism that would enable the whisker array to perform edge detection. Additionally, the data suggest some mechanisms by which the rat might maintain the perception of object stationarity even as its head and whiskers move around an object's surface.

Professor Hartmann will also describe electrophysiological recordings from rat cerebellum that suggest that this brain structure may be particularly important in active sensing behaviors.

Finally, Professor Hartmann will describe steps we are taking to construct arrays of artificial whiskers to implement these candidate active sensing algorithms in hardware that might ultimately be applied in robots.

Big 10 room, Norris University Center

"From Benzene to DNA: A Chemist’s Journey"

Frederick D. Lewis, Professor of Chemistry, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences; 2004 NAA Excellence in Teaching Award

For the student in an introductory course in Organic Chemistry, the first half of the course builds towards a single molecule, benzene. First isolated by Michael Faraday in 1825, the structure of benzene remained an enigma to chemists until Erich Hückel provided a description of its molecular orbitals in 1931. Benzene is the simplest of the class of molecules knows as “aromatic”. Its derivatives have played an important role in the development of chemistry and the chemical industry.

At the end of the first year course, the student is introduced to the chemistry of the nucleic acids DNA and RNA, the essential repositories of genetic information. The discovery that DNA can be cut into small building blocks known as mononucleotides was made in 1935 by Klein and Thannhauser. Each of these building blocks contains an aromatic subunit (related to benzene!). The helical structure of double stranded DNA was proposed by Watson and Crick in 1953 and is considered by many to be the most significant scientific discovery of the 20th century.

The study of aromatic molecules, from simple derivatives of benzene to DNA, has been the focus of the research in the Lewis laboratory for 35 years.

Penn State room, Norris University Center

"Sleepless in America: A Wake Up Call"

Fred W. Turek, Professor, Neurobiology & Physiology, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences

This class will discuss the properties and the role of biological clocks in living systems with emphasis on daily rhythms and sleep. Special emphasis will be placed on the molecular, genetic, and neural basis for the generation of circadian rhythms and on the regulation of the sleep-wake cycle. The importance of biological rhythms for human health and disease will be covered in this class, as well as how aging alters sleep and rhythms. The class will also introduce an intriguing hypothesis: is lack of sleep in our modern society contributing to the obesity epidemic? Americans of all ages now represent a sleep deprived nation: What are the consequences?

Northwestern B room, Norris University Center

"Housing and Racial Politics in Chicago"

Mary Pattillo, Associate Professor of Sociology and African American Studies, Weinberg College of Arts
and Sciences

This class will focus on a South Side Chicago neighborhood that is experiencing both gentrification and the construction of new public housing, which makes it an excellent exemplar of processes experienced by neighborhoods across Chicago, and indeed the country: rising home values, the loss of affordable and rental housing, and the transformation of public housing. Any visitor can see these processes for his/herself with a quick drive down the Dan Ryan Expressway, or on Division Street on the Near North Side. These neighborhoods are not like you might remember them. They are no longer long stretches of public housing high-rises with desolate and crumbling central "plazas".

They are instead in various states of redevelopment ranging from vacant land waiting to be seeded with new low-rise row houses to communities in full swing with their Starbucks and luxury grocery stores. In the case study neighborhood examined in this class (North Kenwood - Oakland, just north of the University of Chicago), the particular battles were about what to do with the high-rise public housing in the midst of this changing neighborhood, about how to negotiate with and be just towards dislocated public housing residents, about the role of black middle class homeowners as change agents, and about how to best build and create this new public policy cure-all, a mixed-income community. Our interest in all of these various negotiations, conflicts, and compromises, will be the realities of Chicago's racially segregated landscape and racially charged politics.

Illinois room, Norris University Center

"Cancer Research: Where We Are Today, Where We’re Going Tomorrow"

Steven T. Rosen, MD (FSM74, 76, GFSM79, 81), Genevieve Teuton Professor of Medicine, Department of Hematology Oncology; Director, Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center , Feinberg School of Medicine

This presentation will review current data on cancer incidence and survival. Strategies to maximize prevention and early detection will be discussed. Modern therapeutic approaches will be highlighted including new therapies that more selectively target the cancer cell.

Purdue A room, Norris University Center

"Corporate Social Responsibility"

Steven Callander, Assistant Professor of Managerial Economics & Decision Sciences, Kellogg School of Management

What does “corporate social responsibility” mean and why do corporations care? This session will look at the “non-market environment,” where corporations compete not with each other for customers, but with activist groups for public opinion and legislative success. We will look at the techniques and strategies adopted by the different sides and why corporations might choose to be “socially responsible.”

Purdue B room, Norris University Center

"So You Want to Start a Magazine"

Charles F. Whitaker (J80, GJ81), Assistant Professor—Magazine Editing; Director, Academy for Alternative Journalism, Medill School of Journalism; 2004-05 Charles Deering McCormick Distinguished Clinical Professor

You have an idea for what would make a great magazine. You can envision the cover, feel the pages and chuckle at the pithy text. And millions would read it! But there's just all those details -- production, investors, advertising. And 90 percent of magazines fail within two years of startup (don't worry, we'll make fun of those!). So come hear what makes a magazine work, and just how much work you can anticipate.

McCormick Tribune Center Room 3-119

Political Advertising: Do We Have a Winner?

Clarke Caywood, Associate Professor, Integrated Marketing Communications; Director, Public Relations Sequence

Larry Stuelpnagel, Assistant Professor, Broadcast, Medill School of Journalism

Two members of the opposite corners of the Medill School (Journalism and Integrated Marketing Communications) will review with the class the newest political ads for the national presidential campaign. Promised by some pundits to be one of the nastiest campaigns in history, the faculty will examine the Bush v. Kerry (assumed) political ads and communications. The faculty will also look back at some of the classic races and classic ads. Be sure to come with your opinions.

"Standards Deviations: How State Education Policy-makers’ Ideas Get Lost in Translation"

James P. Spillane, Professor, Education and Social Policy, School of Education and Social Policy

What happens to federal and state policies as they move from legislative chambers down to individual districts, schools, and classrooms? Although policy implementation is usually seen simply as a technical administrative or political problem, Spillane reminds us that it is a psychological problem too. Spillane argues that administrators and teachers tend to assimilate new policies to what they already know and do.

As messages about instruction percolate or trickle down from the statehouse to the schoolhouse across administrative levels, key actors' understanding of them becomes increasingly distorted, no matter how sincerely they endorse the new ideas.

Spillane likens policy implementation to the telephone game: The player at the start of the line tells a story to the next person in line, who then relays the story to the third person in line. By the time the story is retold by the final player, it is very different from the original.

Annenberg Hall, 3rd floor

5:15-6 pm

Deans' Receptions

Get reacquainted with old friends, meet new ones, and meet and mingle with the deans and
selected faculty at your school's open house.

In the Louis Room, Norris University Center:

	Barbara O’Keefe, School of Communication
	Toni-Marie Montgomery, School of Music
	Joe Schofer, McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science
	Dan Linzer, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences
	Penelope Peterson, School of Education and Social Policy

In the Lobby, McCormick Tribune Center:

Loren Ghiglione, Medill School of Journalism