UNIVERSITY of PENNSYLVANIA Tuesday, October 8, 2002 Volume 49 Number 7 www.upenn.edu/almanac/ Wireless PennNet@University Square A Department of Medical Ethics: Arthur Caplan A new wireless LAN is being piloted in the Dr. Arthur Rubenstein, EVP of UPHS and medicine and life sciences. heart of the newly named University Square Dean of the School of Medicine, has announced the Since its establishment in 1994 as an inter- (within the circle below) with other installations creation of a Department of Medical Ethics, which disciplinary unit of Penn’s School of Medicine, planned for the coming months. Wireless will provide the the Center for Bioethics has grown—under Dr. PennNet@University Square should provide academic home Caplan’s leadership—into a world-renowned “reliabe network access ” according to ISC. ISC for the world-re- educational force, advancing scholarly and pub- Networking and Telecommunications has nowned Center for lic understanding of ethical, legal, social and adopted this phased approach to wireless which Bioethics. Dr. public policy issues in medicine and the life will allow Penn faculty, staff and students to Arthur Caplan, sciences. securely authenticate via a wireless gateway. the Emanuel and “The Center is Penn’s voice of bioethics to ISC will use the pilot to test hardware, establish Robert Hart Pro- the world,” explains Dr. Caplan. “It is also the usage patterns and make decisions about fund- fessor of Bioeth- way the School of Medicine is able to interact on ing, support and scope of the new network. ics, will serve as an educational front with other schools, pro- To begin using Wireless PennNet users must the newly-created grams and university units—outside the world be authenticated. For information see department’s first of medicine—who are interested in bioethics, as www.upenn.edu/computing/wirelesss/. Chairman. well as with the community and the general The Depart- public. The focus of the Center has not changed. ment of Medical However, with the increasing number of bioethics Ethics—the first faculty teaching in the School of Medicine, the to be dedicated to rapid growth of the Masters of Bioethics Program, Arthur Caplan medical ethics at the undertaking of an undergraduate program and an academic medical center—was created to the future prospect of a Ph.D. program in Bioethics, provide an academic home base for Penn faculty it became critical to have a department home for conducting research on ethical issues in medi- bioethics at the School of Medicine.” cine and the life sciences. The new depart- Dr. Caplan’s goals for the new department ment—with 14 full- and part-time faculty mem- are ambitious: “ ... to use the department to better bers—is one of the largest programs of its kind integrate bioethics into the Health System and in the world. It will build on and complement the the School of Medicine, to improve our teaching work of the many Center faculty who are drawn of residents ... to continue to expand our under- from a variety of academic and clinical disci- graduate teaching and opportunities for intern- plines. The Department of Medical Ethics posi- ships and to attract philanthropic support in tions Penn Bioethics as the undisputed leader in response to the University’s commitment to this bioethics research and its use in the practice of new department.” Meltzer Professor of Classical Hebrew Literature: David Stern SAS Dean Samuel H. Preston has announced that Dr. David Stern, Outstanding Young American: professor of Asian and Middle Eastern studies and of religious studies, has been appointed to the Ruth Meltzer Professorship of Classical Anthony Mazzarelli Hebrew Literature. Dr. Anthony Mazzarelli, a law and Dr. Stern, who specializes in classical Jewish literature and religion, bioethics graduate student, has been serves as director of the Jewish Studies Program and teaches in the named one of this year’s ten Outstanding Comparative Literature Program. In 1980, Dr. Stern received his Ph.D. Young Americans. Dr. Mazzarelli, earned in comparative literature from Harvard University where he was also a his M.D. from the Robert Wood Johnson junior fellow in Harvard’s Society of Fellows. He has been teaching at Medical School. The Outstanding Young Penn since 1984. American Award is given by the U. S. Dr. Stern was recently named a fellow of the American Academy of Junior Chamber. Among his many ac- Jewish Research. He also has received fellowships and grants from the complishments Dr. Mazzarelli founded American Philosophical Society, the National Endowment for the Hu- the Healthcare Outreach Project in manities, and the American Council of Learned Societies. Camden, N.J., a student-run clinic that Dr. Stern has written widely on midrash, the Biblical commentaries enables residents without medical insur- of the Rabbis. To date, he has published four books, including Midrash ance to receive good primary medical David Stern and Theory: Ancient Jewish Exegesis and Contemporary Literary Stud- care. Dr. Mazzarelli plans to eventually ies and Rabbinic Fantasies: Imaginative Narratives from Classical Hebrew Literature. He is become a health policymaker. currently working on a book which traces the histories of the Talmud, the Rabbinic Bible, the Prayerbook, and the Passover Haggadah as material artifacts in order to show how the physical forms of these books have helped to shape their meaning in Jewish culture. His essays and reviews on modern Jewish literature and culture have appeared in The New Republic, Commentary, The New IN THIS ISSUE York Times Book Review and Tikkun. He is also a founding editor of Prooftexts: A Journal of Jewish 2 Council coverage; Deaths: Dr. Carter, Literary History. Ms. Semple Dr. Szuba The Ruth Meltzer Professorship of Classical Hebrew Literature was created by the bequest of 3 Eradicating Poliovirus from Laboratories; Ruth Meltzer, CCC’38, who passed away in 2001. Mrs. Meltzer was the wife of the late Leon Speaking Out: Security and Parking Meltzer, Esq. A lifelong resident of Philadelphia, Mr. Meltzer earned his B.S. in economics at the 4 Honors & Other Things Wharton School in 1923 and his J.D. at Penn’s Law School in 1928. He was a partner of the law firm 5 Rededicating Curtis Organ; Volunteer Opportunities of Meltzer and Schiffrin. Mrs. Meltzer was a major supporter of a number of areas at Penn, 6 Project F.A.R.E. at UPM; Employment & Disability establishing professorships in the Law School and the Medical School. Mrs. Meltzer also provided 7 Update; CrimeStats; Classifieds significant support for the Center for Advanced Judaic Studies and the Jewish Studies Program. 8 Death of the Hon. Walter Annenberg Council Coverage Deaths The first University Council meeting of the Dr. Martin Szuba, Psychiatry year was so well attended last Wednesday that Dr. Carter, History and H&SS President Judith Rodin commended the Council Dr. Edward C. Dr. Martin P. members for the “terrific attendance.” She then Carter, adjunct Szuba, associate appointed Dr. Larry Gross to serve as modera- professor of his- professor of psy- tor, for the second year in a row and University tory, and history chiatry in the Di- Archivist Mark Frazier Lloyd to continue as and sociology of vision of Sleep and Parliamentarian for his 12th year. President Rodin science, and the li- Chronobiology, also noted “the passing of a great friend of this brarian of the died on October University—Walter Annenberg” (see page 8). American Philo- 3, of pancreatic The four remaining 2001-2002 year-end re- Photo by Frank Margeson sophical Society, cancer at the age ports of Council committees were presented by died on October 1, of 44 at his home the chairs of the committees. at the age of 74. in Haddonfield. After Dr. Dennis DeTurck presented the Ad- Dr. Carter re- Dr. Szuba was missions and Financial Aid report (Almanac ceived his A.B. in also the director October 1), Dr. Rodin commented that Penn’s 1954 and his of the Laboratory efforts to recruit more broadly and to provide M.A. in Ameri- for Transcranial financial aid to students who are not from North can History in Magnetic Stimu- lation and medi- America, is made possible with the help of the Edward Carter 1956 from Penn. Martin Szuba Alumni Clubs in various countries which sup- He received his cal director of the port students from their locale. She also added Ph.D. from Bryn Mawr College in 1962. Dr. Insomnia Program here. He received his B.S. in that while the early decision debate is an inter- Carter came to Penn as an adjunct professor in 1980 in zoology and an M.D. in 1984, both from esting issue, it is one that the Ivy Presidents 1980 in the history department. In 1981 he also the University of Michigan. He came to Penn in cannot discuss due to anti-trust agreements. became an adjunct professor of history and so- 1993 as an assistant professor of psychiatry in Dr. Ellis Golub presented the report of the ciology of science. the School of Medicine and became an assistant Libraries Committee (Almanac October 1) which Dr. Carter had been the librarian for the Ameri- professor of psychiatry at HUP, clinician-edu- deals with digital vs. print issues, such as the can Philosophical Society since 1980 and from cator track in 1999. This July he was promoted acquisition of online journals; authentication 1970-1995 was the editor in chief of The Papers to associate professor of psychiatry at HUP. improvements and an information literacy cen- of Benjamin Henry Latrobe, a ten-volume edition “Marty was a remarkably talented and inno- ter in the library. of the writings of the early American architect and vative psychiatric physician who was extremely The Facilities Committee report (Almanac engineer published by Yale University Press.