FOR ALUMNI AND FRIENDS OF USC DANA AND DAVID DORNSIFE COLLEGE OF LETTERS, ARTS AND SCIENCES SPRING / SUMMER 2018 MAGAZINE The Travel Issue TROTTINGGLOBE- Exploration enriches life and learning, expanding our world view. CONTRIBUTOR Peter Mancall Divisional Dean for the Humanities, Andrew W. Mellon Professor of the Humanities and Linda and Harlan Martens Director of the Early Modern Studies Institute “He’s eaten a toad and a half for breakfast,” is one of no less than 228 popular — and often colorful — descriptions of drunkenness used by colo- nialists in 18th-century North America. “This is a sign of just how common excessive drinking was in North America during this period,” Peter Mancall, told a German television crew. The professor of history and anthropology was being interviewed for Terra X, a weekly series on Germany’s biggest public broadcast chan- nel, ZDF. The program attracts some 5 million viewers. Mancall was answering questions on the impact of alcohol trade on native cultures in North America — a field in which he has long been a leading expert. Comparing Native Americans’ radically different relation- ship with alcohol to that of European settlers, Mancall concluded that it is an ines- capable fact that alcohol was an agent of empire building in North America, harming Native American communi- ties and leading to accidents, violence and even murder. “No one can claim the Europeans were unaware of what was happening,” he said, “but the forces of colonialism overpowered the indigenous voices of protest.” 2 MANCALL PORTRAIT BY PETER ZHAOYU ZHOU INTERVIEW PHOTO BY MIKE GLIER SPRING / SUMMER 2018 A Mind for Travel 2 From the Dean Travel is education. We seek distance from our everyday lives not only to find new Contents 4 COVER STORY experiences, but to view from a different vantage the world we think we under- Luggage stickers are the classic SENIOR ASSOCIATE DEAN stand. Whether the journey leads to hidden ruins or towering skyscrapers, we learn symbol of a well-traveled person. FOR STRATEGIC INITIATIVES AND COMMUNICATION something new and valuable about ourselves and the world we inhabit. Lance Ignon 5 SOCIAL DORNSIFE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Each year, dozens of USC Dornsife undergraduates embark on Problems Without Flags of many nations adorn the Darrin S. Joy Passports, Maymester and other travel experiences that complement their coursework. Engaging directly with different people and cultures, these students explore themes Von KleinSmid Center colonnade, MANAGING EDITOR such as peacebuilding in Colombia or contemporary art in Senegal, among many other a reminder that USC plays home to Susan Bell opportunities. students from all around the globe. ART DIRECTOR / PRODUCTION MANAGER At USC Dornsife, travel doesn’t require a boarding pass. We continually make the journey Letty Avila to the frontiers of knowledge. Our faculty push the limits of convergent bioscience as they 6 FROM THE HEART OF USC WRITERS AND EDITORS develop ways to predict and prevent diseases. Our historians guide us back in time to provide Science and cinema join forces; Michelle Boston a means of critically informing the public discourse of the 21st century. Our social scientists Your weight may be tied to where Emily Gersema bring us into diverse communities, helping us work with them on relevant issues including you live; Sexism in sports persists; Jim Key Course aims to make Los Angeles Laura Paisley immigration and economic inequality. And all of our scholars set out searching not only for answers, but for deeper questions. more elder-friendly. DESIGNER Exploration is what the liberal arts and sciences are all about. We challenge assumptions. Matthew Savino We make surprising connections. We learn to pave our own paths through the great 7 Curriculum VIDEOGRAPHER AND PHOTOGRAPHER unknown. Mike Glier 8 And at the end of our travels, we return to the comfort of homes we know so well. Archive COMMUNICATIONS ASSISTANT But new parts of our minds have been opened — and that opens new possibilities. THE TRAVEL ISSUE 10 Deann Webb Profile Amber D. Miller CONTRIBUTORS 13 Dean of USC Dornsife 20 Lexicon Orli Belman, Ian Chaffee, Joanna Clay, Bill Dotson, Greg Hardesty, Anna H. Bing Dean’s Chair Dan Knapp, Stephen Koenig, Eric Lindberg, Maria Budisavljevic 14 Oparnica Simic, Zen Vuong BookpackingEducational in Louisiana. Examining Voyage culture in Cuba. Excavating artifacts in Greece. Exploring hip hop in Paris. In The Field USC DORNSIFE ADMINISTRATION Students reap travel’s educational rewards — benefiting from a tradition stretching back to ancient times.By Susan Bell 18 Amber D. Miller, Dean • Stephen Bradforth, Divisional Dean for Natural Our World Sciences and Mathematics • Steven Finkel, College Dean of Graduate and 26 48 Professional Education • Lance Ignon, Senior Associate Dean For Strategic Legacy Initiatives and Communication • Andrew Lakoff, Divisional Dean for Social 49 Sciences • Peter Mancall, Divisional Dean for the Humanities • Eddie Sartin, Digital Humanity Personal and cultural legacy meets cutting-edge research technology, enabling the documentation and preservation Faculty News Senior Associate Dean for Advancement • Andrew Stott, College Dean of of Byzantine murals in Eastern Orthodox churches. By Laura Paisley Undergraduate Education 50 DORNSIFE FAMILY USC DORNSIFE BOARD OF COUNCILORS 30 Family secrets shed light on a finan- Robert D. Beyer, Chair • Wendy Abrams • Robert Alvarado • William cial crisis; Alumna helps refugees Barkett • Leslie Berger • Susan Casden • Richard S. Flores • Shane Foley • read; Discarded pulp makes for Lisa Goldman • Jana Waring Greer • Pierre Habis • Yossie Hollander • ImmigrationTraveling is central to the rootsHome of the American experience. So what does it mean when we make our home tasty nutrition; Math grad wields Janice Bryant Howroyd • Martin Irani • Dan James • Stephen G. Johnson • By Michelle Boston the power of numbers. Suzanne Nora Johnson • Bettina Kallins • Yoon Kim • Samuel King • across borders, learning a new culture while honoring where we come from? Arthur Lev • Kathy Leventhal • Robert Osher • Gerald Papazian • Andrew Perlman • Lawrence Piro • Kelly Porter • Michael Reilly • Harry 36 50 Faculty Canon Robinson • Stephanie Booth Shafran • Carole Shammas • Kumarakulasingam “Suri” Suriyakumar 52 HolocaustA Final survivor Pinchas Farewell Gutter’s final visit to his homeland is a haunting reminder of family lost and a life he might Alumni News USC DORNSIFE MAGAZINE have lived. He captures his personal saga in virtual reality for future generations. By Michelle Boston 54 Published twice a year by the USC Dornsife Office of Communication Alumni and at the University of Southern California. © 2018 USC Dornsife College. The diverse opinions expressed in USC Dornsife Magazine do not necessarily 40 ILLUSTRATION BY MATTHEW SAVINO MATTHEW BY ILLUSTRATION represent the views of the editors, USC Dornsife administration or Student Canon USC. USC Dornsife Magazine welcomes comments from its readers to 58 [email protected] or USC Dornsife Magazine, 1150 S. Olive St. IntrepidFrom explorers ofWhence the modern age, marine scientistsWe travel Came the world’s oceans to understand the mysteries of — Remembering T2400, Los Angeles, CA 90015. PHOTO BY MIKE GLIER and threats to — Earth’s fount of life. By Darrin S. Joy 60 IN MY OPINION 44 NFL Hall of Famer gives his thoughts on winning leadership. AlumnusThe William “Bill”Man Altaffer has Who’svisited every country Been in the world —Everywhere many not just once. From North Korea to the North Pole, Sweden to the Sahara, Tipperary to Timbuktu, he’s seen it all. By Susan Bell SOCIAL DORNSIFE Twitter On Campus @KUSCGail: A very proud moment for @ClassicalKUSC: “I WAS THERE” our beloved former intern is CoverIn days gone by, travelers Story @USC Valedictorian! Congrats collected commemorative Rose Campion! Commencement stickers from each stop along about to begin in Alumni Park. #KnockEmDead the way to their destination, adorning their luggage with @cheltfestivals: If you love the them. The practice kept an @Marvel, you’ll love The Science easily visible record of their of Marvel. Join #InfinityWar scientific advisor @asymptotia journey and silently proclaimed as he explores what happens that the bag’s owner was a when the worlds of science and worldly-wise person. comic books collide. Luggage stickers arose in the mid-19th century as a way @JodyAVallejo: Felicidades to my compa and @CSII_USC for hotels to ensure travelers’ @PERE_USC Director bags weren’t lost on their way @Prof_MPastor who was awarded from the train or shipyard the @USC Associates Award for to lodgings. Beginning some- Creativity in #Research for “his courage in addressing soci- time around the turn of the etal challenges & his unflagging 20th century and carrying commitment to #greatergood.” through to the early 1960s — the so-called “golden age @MortezDehghani: RT Nature- of travel” — hotels used the HumanBehaviour: So cool that we got the cover! @JoeEHoover stickers as advertisements, @MarlonMooijman @USC_Research often designing them to @USCDornsife mirror travel posters of the day and eagerly affixing them @uscwrigleyinst: Thank you to the 500+ divers who retrieved to the sturdy suitcases and about 2 TONS of marine trash trunks in use at the time. in today’s Avalon Underwater As luggage makers began to Cleanup. It was a great day. use lighter, softer materials, #catalina #uscdornsife the stickers began to fade @SFeakins: on how University from mainstream use. Their leadership can set