The Reporter: February 1997, Vol.8, No.1
Reporter at Large

Dr. George Rupp

Columbia University's 18th president, Dr. George Rupp, gave the Dean's Distinguished Lecture in the Humanities earlier this month. Dr. Rupp spoke on "The Changing Role of Religion in Contemporary Society." Dr. Rupp is also a professor of religion at Columbia.

Dr. Michael D. Gershon

In January, Dr. Michael D. Gershon, chairman and professor of anatomy and cell biology, presented the Dean's Distinguished Lecture in the Basic Sciences. He spoke on "Gut Instinct: The Intrinsic Nervous System of the Bowel and its Development." The Dean's Distinguished Lecture Series at P&S is in its 16th year and was established to create a broadened academic environment in which topics of wide intellectual interest would be presented to a general audience.

The School of Nursing has a new director of its managed care program. Dr. Pamela Maraldo joined the school in August. She is a former president of the National League for Nursing and of Planned Parenthood.

Dr. Leonard A. Sauer, research scientist in medicine at Bassett Healthcare, spoke at the Ernst Boehringer Institute in Vienna, Austria. Dr. Sauer presented a lecture about his work with tumor growth, fatty acid uptake, and melatonin. The visit to Vienna may lead to a joint research effort between Bassett and the Boehringer Institute, the research arm of the pharmaceutical company Boehringer/Ingleheim.

The deans of the 27 U.S. graduate schools of public health have elected Dr. Allan Rosenfield president of the Association of Schools of Public Health. Dr. Rosenfield, dean of Columbia's School of Public Health, the DeLamar Professor of Public Health, and P&S professor of obstetrics and gynecology, will serve as the principal spokesperson for the academic public health community for two years.

Dr. Mervyn W. Susser

The American College of Epidemiology has voted Dr. Mervyn W. Susser to honorary fellowship. Dr. Susser is the Gertrude H. Sergievsky Professor Emeritus of Epidemiology and special lecturer in the School of Public Health. The honorary fellowship is one of the highest honors the American College of Epidemiology bestows; it honors only those who have made the most distinguished and sustained contributions to epidemiology.

St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center celebrated two anniversaries late last year with its Anniversaries Ball. The black tie dinner and dance at the Grand Hyatt Hotel commemorated the 150th anniversary of the founding of St. Luke's Hospital and the 125th anniversary of the opening of Roosevelt Hospital.

The University Lecture in December was given by Dr. Richard Axel, the Higgins Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, professor of pathology at P&S, and investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Dr. Axel's lecture was titled "Towards a Molecular Biology of Perception." Dr. Axel also gave a University Lecture in 1982.

Dr. Barron Lerner

The Burroughs Wellcome Fund, an independent private foundation, has awarded Dr. Barron Lerner a one-time award to fund his research on the history of breast and prostate cancers since 1945. The fund's awards in the history of medicine commemorate its 40th anniversary as a philanthropic supporter of the biomedical sciences. Dr. Lerner, the Arnold P. Gold Assistant Professor of Medicine, is one of 25 scholars funded with a total of nearly $1.3 million to study the history of contemporary medicine.

Out of 850 entries, CPMC's was one of 10 winners in a competition to find the country's best and most promising uses of electronic communications. Together with its partners, the New York City Department of Health and the Visiting Nurse Service of New York, CPMC won the National Information Infrastructure Award. The winning project uses wireless telecommunications, hand-held and pen-operated computers, expert systems, and the World Wide Web to provide an electronic link between the homes of patients and the medical professionals and institutions that treat them. Dr. George Hripcsak, P&S assistant professor of medical informatics, was principal investigator for the project. The project was also part of the NII Awards exhibit in the Technology Pavilion, a special feature in celebration of the presidential inauguration last month in Washington, D.C.

Dr. Frieda Feldman

Last fall, Dr. Frieda Feldman, P&S professor of radiology, was the invited speaker at the annual conference of the Japanese Musculoskeletal Society in Nagoya, Japan, and visiting professor at the Yamaguchi Medical Center in Yamaguchi, Japan. She was also a featured speaker at the August 1996 closed meeting for pathologists and radiologists of the International Skeletal Society in Paris, where she also spoke at the society's refresher course.

Dr. Peter Wang, associate clinical professor of dentistry in the School of Dental and Oral Surgery, has been awarded the title of honorary professor by the Peking Union Medical College. The award, presented at a formal ceremony attended by the prime minister of China, is the highest honor the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences offers. Dr. Wang was the only dentist to receive the honor.

Dr. Abraham Spector, P&S professor of ophthalmology, has been appointed the Malcolm P. Aldrich Research Professor of Ophthalmology. Dr. Spector has been a member of the Columbia faculty since 1965 and is internationally recognized for his work in lens and cataract research.

Pat Molholt

The electronic curriculum project led by Pat Molholt, assistant vice president and associate dean for scholarly resources, now has the formal influence of the Ph.D. study she has completed. She received her Ph.D. degree in December 1996 from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Her study focus, knowledge structuring, was completed through RPI's interdisciplinary department in computer science and linguistics.

Dr. William L. Young, P&S associate professor of anesthesiology in neurological surgery and in radiology, was elected president of the Society of Neurosurgical Anesthesia and Critical Care at its annual meeting last fall.

The American Dietetics Association bestowed honorary membership on Dr. Steven B. Heymsfield, P&S professor of medicine and deputy director of the Obesity Research Center at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center.

Dr. Edgar Housepian, P&S professor of clinical neurological surgery, has been appointed special adviser for international affiliations to the vice president and dean. Based on his experience with international programs, Dr. Housepian will advise Dr. Herbert Pardes on the development of international education, research, and clinical affiliation programs. Dr. Housepian will work closely with University administration and Health Sciences administration and faculty. He will help individual faculty explore and develop interactions with their counterparts abroad and will help identify resources to strengthen the systems that facilitate international collaborations.

The Glaxo Wellcome Institute for Digestive Health has awarded Dr. Andrew Talal, P&S research scientist in gastroenterology at St. Luke's- Roosevelt Hospital Center, a one-year grant for clinical research. Dr. Talal is one of approximately 25 promising young scientists the institute chose to conduct research to help advance the understanding, diagnosis, and treatment of digestive diseases.

Dr. Andrew Blitzer

Dr. Andrew Blitzer, P&S professor of clinical otolaryngology and clinical dentistry/oral surgery, received the Distinguished Service Award at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery in Washington, D.C. Only 20 otolaryngologists have received this award.

The National Safety Council's Surgeons' Award for Distinguished Service to Safety was presented this year to Dr. Barbara A. Barlow, P&S professor of clinical surgery and chief of pediatric surgery at Harlem Hospital Center. Dr. Barlow was recognized for years of dedication as a physician, educator, researcher, and volunteer in preventing pediatric injury.

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