Author Tom Wolfe CAMPUS TALK STAFF Q&A SCRAPBOOK joined Stern to discuss New York’s Robert A. M. Stern’s Moss Cooper on CU’s No rest for urban fabric. New York | 3 film triumphs | 7 the wise | 8 VOL. 32, NO. 8 NEWS AND IDEAS FOR THE COLUMBIA COMMUNITY FEBRUARY 5, 2007 FACULTY HONORS RESEARCH Ten Arts and 10 REASONS TO LOVE Second Sciences Alzheimer’s Faculty THE LIBRARIES... Gene AND THE LIBRARIANS Uncovered Honored By Carolyn M. Whelan PROFILES OF 10 By Record Staff n a breakthrough offering LIBRARIANS hope to millions of aging en professors from the Pages 4–5 Americans, a Columbia-led University’s Arts and research team has uncovered a Sciences faculty have won Isecond gene, known as SORL1, this year’s Distinguished implicated in late-onset Alzheimer’s. TFaculty Awards, an annual honor Late-onset Alzheimer’s is the that recognizes faculty members most common form of the disease, who demonstrate extraordinary afflicting people over 65 with merit across a range of professional memory loss, dementia and even- activities—particularly in instruct- tual death. Today, there is no cure. ing and mentoring their students. Although much work remains The 2006–2007 honorees, to identify gene mutations linked selected by a committee of six sen- to Alzheimer’s, the discovery, if ior Columbia faculty led by Nicholas verified, offers more clues as to Dirks, vice president of Arts and what causes the illness and how to Sciences, will receive an annual treat it. The first gene known to stipend of $25,000 for three years. increase the risk of Alzheimer’s, “This year’s honorees, from fields APOE, was discovered in 1993. as various as art history, English, More than a dozen genes are economics, history, physics and thought to play a role in this psychology, exemplifies the com- disease. mitment of Columbia’s faculty to “We’re approaching crisis levels extraordinary teaching,” said Dirks. in the number of individuals devel- The awards were established in oping this disease,” said Richard 2005 through a $12 million dona- Mayeux, the Gertrude H. Sergievsky tion from Columbia trustee Gerry professor of neurology, psychiatry Lenfest (LAW’58), one of the and epidemiology at Columbia University’s most generous benefac- University Medical Center and the tors. This fall, he continued his com- mitment to building Columbia’s Study has roots in faculty with a pledge of up to $48 million to create matching funds for Washington Heights & endowed faculty chairs. Inwood aging project study’s lead researcher. “Identifying genes helps. But we still must pin- Michael Ryan, keeper of point pathways and potential tar- the University’s cunabula and gets that lead to the disease, to other rarities, holds a file of come up with a treatment.” 25 letters and clippings from Key study findings, published in artists Rockwell Kent and Dale Nature Genetics, span over five MICHAEL DAMES Nichols—one of the Rare Book years of research among four uni- Gerry Lenfest congratulates and Manuscript Library’s versities, several continents and winner Wei Shang. recent acquisitions. 6,000 volunteers from four differ- 2006–2007 Distinguished Faculty EILEEN BARROSO ent ethnic groups. Awardees: But if the research is internation- he best antidote for the winter doldrums is to 4) Extraordinary collections attract extraordinary al, its roots lie in work Mayeux began think of all the things you appreciate about your people. Turkish novelist and Nobel laureate Orhan • VIRGINIA CORNISH, associate profes- in 1989 known as the Washington immediate environment. Topping the list for Pamuk, now a visiting professor at Columbia, sor of chemistry, is well known in Heights and Inwood Community many Columbians would be the University’s wrote his most dazzling work, , in a the field for her imaginative use The Black Book Aging Project. After collecting data Tlibraries. How do we love these information-rich reposi- room in Butler. of genetic engineering to create on elderly African Americans, tories? Let us count the ways: 5) The libraries reflect global concerns. They are now new enzymes. She mentors stu- Caribbean Hispanics and whites the largest repository of human rights archives in dents from all over the world. who reside in these northern 1) Twenty-five libraries; 174 miles of books and other the world. • GERALDINE DOWNEY, professor of Manhattan neighborhoods, Mayeux items; 3 million visitors and 140,000 acquisitions 6) They have one of the world’s greatest collections psychology and department chair, and his team found that Dominicans each year; 45,000 items checked out per month; 135 on African American history—Harlem in particular. is highly regarded for her ground- were afflicted with late-onset librarians (several are profiled on pp. 4–5). 7) They connect us with the concerns of greater breaking research on the psycho- Alzheimer’s at a rate nearly three 2) With so many rare items you’re bound to find one NYC—e.g., through the September 11, 2001 Oral logical aspects of rejection. Her times that of their non-Hispanic that excites you—whether it’s a Buddhist sutra History Narrative and Memory Project tapes. students stress the importance of peers—a discovery that spurred dating from the year 1162 C.E., a Rococo engrav- 8) They have cool digital projects, such as putting her “Children at Risk” course. Alzheimer’s experts to come togeth- ing, or the papers of Harlem writer and activist Harlem’s multimedia assets online. • ROBERT HARRIST, the Jane and er to find the common gene among Hubert Henry Harrison (1883–1927). 9) Who else on campus hosts talks with titles like Leopold Swergold professor of sufferers of all ethnicities. 3) The libraries have done us the favor of displaying “Bookworms, Red-Rot, and Leather Dressing”? Chinese art history and depart- Peter St. George-Hyslop of the 250 of their rarest objects online at 10) Last but not least, the stacks and wood paneling of ment chair, is renowned for his www. University of Toronto contributed Butler Library are reminiscent of Harry Potter and work on issues of authorship, columbia.edu/cu/lweb/eresources/exhibitions/ genetic data from Europeans treasures/. Hogwarts—thoroughly enchanting. continued on page 8 continued on page 8 www.columbia.edu/news 2 FEBRUARY 5, 2007 TheRecord RECENT SIGHTINGS MILESTONES The Columbia College Alumni Association presented the Alexander Hamilton Medal to its outgoing presi- dent, ROBERT BERNE, CC’60, BUS’62, at its annual fundraising dinner in October 2006. Berne has long worked in New York City’s real estate industry and cur- rently serves as a board member of the Settlement Housing Fund, Inc., which creates affordable housing for ethnically diverse city residents. ANNE BOGART, professor of theatre arts in the School of the Arts, was among the first group of artists to receive an unrestricted grant of $50,000 from United States Artists. The 2006 Crafoord Prize in Geosciences from Sweden’s Royal Academy of Sciences went to WALLACE S. BROECKER, Newberry professor at the Lamont- Doherty Earth Observatory, for his “innovative and pio- neering research” in explaining how the ocean, atmos- phere and biosphere interact with the climate. BARRY HONIG, an investigator for the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and director of the center for compu- tational biology and bioinformatics at Columbia, has won the Alexander Hollaender Award in Biophysics from the National Academy of Sciences. GUY LONGOBARDO, B.S.’49, M.S.’50, Eng.Sc.D.’62, a gradu- ate of Columbia’s Department of Mechanical Engineer- ing and a former professor in that department, received the Engineering School Alumni Association’s highest honor, the Egleston Medal, on Nov. 15, 2006, for his work JO LIN in the field of biotechnology. COFFEE WITH A CONSCIENCE Is your Blue Java looking a little green nowadays? Carmen Alegria (above), who works at Blue Java in Butler Library, knows why.Alegria explained that beginning in January 2007, the campus changed over to selling fair trade, organic coffee supplied by Dallis Coffee, which is headquartered in Ozone Park, Queens. Using beans imported from Central America, East Africa and Indonesia, Dallis customized a blend for Columbia that is “well-balanced, roasty, with a hint of spice and dark berry,”according to company spokesperson Jim Munson. Fair trade roasters and distributors such as Dallis Coffee purchase directly from coffee farmers rather than buying from a commodity exchange.As Munson puts it: “The difference Columbia University is mak- ing by buying this coffee is tremendous to farmers: a 30 to 40 percent premium over the commodity market price, which means revenue for edu- cation and medicine in these developing countries.” Is the “sundial” on Low Chester Lee (EN’70 BUS’74), SEAS Dean Zvi Galil, Eric A. Schon (EN’68), Guy Longobardo and Ronald P. Mangione (EN’69). USPS 090-710 ISSN 0747-4504 Plaza functional? PETER OZSVÁTH, professor of mathematics, is one of four Vol. 32, No. 8, February 5, 2007 recipients of the 2007 Oswald Veblen Prize in Geometry. MICHAEL WOODFORD, the John Bates Clark professor Published by the Dear Alma’s Owl, Office of Communications I don’t understand why everyone of political economy, has won the 2007 Deutsche Bank and Public Affairs refers to the stone pedestal on Low Prize in Financial Economics for his contributions to Plaza as the sundial. Does it work? the theory and practical analysis of monetary policy. — Time Sensitive t: 212-854-5573 f: 212-678-4817 Dear Lost-in-Time, GRANTS & GIFTS Columbia Record Staff Your puzzlement is understandable. New Business Journalism Grants Editor: Mary-Lea Cox Today’s sundial consists of a nine-foot- Graphic Designer: Scott Hug long circular pink pedestal. The gno- WHO GAVE IT: Hearst Corporation Staff Writer: Dan Rivero mon, the object that casts the shadow, HOW MUCH: $1.25 million University Photographer: Eileen Barroso has gone missing.