Furman University Research Articles

Expelling the Poor: Atlantic Seaboard States and the Nineteenth-Century Origins of American Immigration Policy

September 01 2017 Expelling the Poor: Atlantic Seaboard States and the Nineteenth-Century Origins of American Immigration Policy Expelling the Poor: Atlantic Seaboard States and the Nineteenth-Century Origins of American Immigration Policy. By HidetakaHirota. (Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2017. Pp. 320. $35.00.) Diane C. Vecchio Diane C. Vecchio Diane C. Vecchio is professor and chair of the history department at Furman University in Greenville, SC. An immigration historian, Vecchio has published several articles on Italian and Jewish immigration and is the author of Merchants, Midwives, and Laboring Women: Italian Migrants in Urban America. Her current work examines Jewish immigrants and their economic impact on the South Carolina Upcountry Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Author and Article Information Diane C. Vecchio Diane C. Vecchio is professor and chair of the history department at Furman University in Greenville, SC. An immigration historian, Vecchio has published several articles on Italian and Jewish immigration and is the author of Merchants, Midwives, and Laboring Women: Italian Migrants in Urban America. Her current work examines Jewish immigrants and their economic impact on the South Carolina Upcountry Online Issn: 1937-2213 Print Issn: 0028-4866 © 2017 by The New England Quarterly2017The New England Quarterly The New England Quarterly (2017) 90 (3): 491–493. https://doi.org/10.1162/tneq_r_00635 Cite Icon Cite Permissions Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Search Site Citation Diane C. Vecchio; Expelling the Poor: Atlantic Seaboard States and the Nineteenth-Century Origins of American Immigration Policy. The New England Quarterly 2017; 90 (3): 491–493. doi: https://doi.org/10.1162/tneq_r_00635 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentAll JournalsThe New England Quarterly Search Advanced Search This content is only available as a PDF. © 2017 by The New England Quarterly2017The New England Quarterly Article PDF first page preview Close Modal You do not currently have access to this content.

Llama Hemoglobin Binding to Heterologous Haptoglobins

The plasma protein haptoglobin binds hemoglobin released from lysed erythrocytes. The complex is internalized through the macrophage membrane protein CD163 thus preventing pathological oxidation of biological molecules and tissues. Hemoglobin primary structures can be as little as 50% homologous among species. Haptoglobin also shows structural variation among species and a genetic polymorphism is found in humans and not in other mammals. The goal of this study was to examine the extent to which hemoglobins can bind to haptoglobins from different species. The llama is adapted to high altitude and its hemoglobin might thus differ from those of many other mammals. By using non‐denaturing agarose gel electrophoresis, the charge properties and binding to human haptoglobin was compared for llama, human, dog, pig, horse and goat hemoglobins.Llama hemoglobin was found to be more positively charged than the other mammalian hemoglobins. All hemoglobins tested showed a band of increased anodal mobility when incubated with human plasma which suggested formation of hemoglobin‐haptoglobin complexes. For one plasma sample there was only one new band whereas for a second sample two new anodal hemoglobin bands were formed. This suggested the ability of the different species hemoglobins to bind to different genetic polymorphisms of human haptoglobin. When the different hemoglobins were incubated with purified haptoglobin variants Hp 1:1 and Hp 2:2, one new anodal hemoglobin‐containing band was seen. The new band in the Hp 1:1 samples had higher mobility than those in the Hp 2:2 samples. In all cases the llama hemoglobin‐haptoglobin samples had lesser mobility than those of the other mammals. Because incubation with one of the plasma samples produced two new bands rather than one as with the Hp 1:1 and Hp2:2 it is surmised that this plasma sample had the Hp 2:1 variant and that all animal hemoglobins tested can bind the three genetic variants of human haptoglobin although this variation is regarded to be absent in non‐human species. It is concluded that the binding sites on hemoglobin and haptoglobin for each other have been evolutionarily conserved despite differences in primary structure and marked difference in the charge of llama hemoglobin.Support or Funding InformationThe research was supported by Furman University Research Experience for Undergraduates 2016 session, NSF grant NSF CHE‐1460806 – awarded to K. Buchmueller and T. Hanks at Furman University and by Albany State University, Center for Undergraduate Research

Consider advantages of body‐worn cameras

Body‐worn cameras can provide a big benefit to campus safety units. Campus police officers respond to many calls on foot, and many calls take officers inside residence halls and academic buildings, so a dashcam doesn't do them much good, said Tom Saccenti, chief of police at Furman University.

Characterization of alginate-polypyrrole composites for tissue engineering scaffolds

Event Abstract Back to Event Characterization of alginate-polypyrrole composites for tissue engineering scaffolds Cassandra J. Wright1, Binbin Zhang2, Melissa Kuester3, Paul J. Molino2 and Timothy W. Hanks3 1 University of Washington Bothell, Engineering and Mathematics, United States 2 University of Wollongong, Intelligent Polymer Research Institute, Australia 3 Furman University, Chemistry, United States Statement of Purpose: Alginic acid and its salts (alginates) are block copolymers of β-D-mannuronate (M) and α-L-guluronate (G)[1]. Ca2+, and other multivalent ions, act as efficient cross-linkers, which results in gels with variable viscoelasticity. The rigidity of the material is largely a function of the ion density and distribution in the host polymer. We are interested in alginate-based composites of containing polycationic intrinsically conducting polymers, particularly polypyrrole (PPy) that do not need additional dopants such as polystyrene sulfonate. These composites can be developed as 3D printable conducting polymer scaffolds for tissue engineering. Methods: Sodium alginate (ALG, 2% w/v), pyrrole, and sodium persulfate were dissolved in deionized water and stirred for 6h in an ice bath to allow the polymerization of PPy in the presence of ALG. This was followed by 48h of dialysis for purification. Concentration of pyrrole was investigated to enhance conductivity. Initial molar ratios of 1:1, 1:1.5, 1:2, and 1:3 molar equivalents ratios of alginate to polypyrrole were used (further referred to as 1:1, etc.). The resultant materials were analyzed using FTIR for composition, rheometer for viscosity, 4-point probe for conductivity, and SEM for structure. Crosslinking was performed on the materials for 4-point probe and SEM experiments using calcium carbonate and glucono-delta-lactone. Preliminary cell studies were performed using rat PC12 cells cultured on tissue culture polystyrene, alginate, and 1:2 ALG-PPy. Proliferation and differentiation conditions (t=24, 48, & 72h) were assessed using live-dead stain & immunofluorescence staining (β-tubulin and DAPI) for cell count and morphology, respectively. Results: Polymerization of the pyrrole in the presence of alginate did result in a significant decrease in the viscosity of all ALG-PPy solutions compared to ALG only solutions (Fig 1). Conductivity was found to increase from 1:1 and 1:1.5eq to 1:2. No statistical difference was found between the 1:2 and 1:3 (Fig 2). 1:5 formed fractured films and thus was not suitable for some measurements. SEM images suggest that the PPy is polymerizing directly onto the framework of the alginate as higher pyrrole content corresponded to increased wall thickness (Fig 3). Preliminary cell studies indicated decreased cell clustering on the ALG-PPy compared to ALG. Figure 1: Viscosity measurements of ALG and ALG-PPy hydrogels. Figure 2: Conductivity of crosslinked ALG-PPy films using 4-point probe Figure 3: SEM (1000X Mag) SEM (1000x Magnification) showing the pore structure of each of the crosslinked substrates (a) Alginate, (b) 1:1 ALG:PPy, (c) 1:1.5 ALG:PPy, (d) 1:2 ALG:PPy Conclusions: This work serves to show that alginate can serve as a direct framework on which PPy can polymerize without the need for additional dopants. Alginate has been shown to serve as an ionomeric dopant for polypyrrole, resulting in a conducting composite possessing electronic conductivity. Acceptable physical properties are obtained up to relatively high polypyrrole loading, offering a promising approach to a unique cellular scaffold. This work was supported through a GEAR:RE award from South Carolina EPSCoR/IDeA.; CJW was supported by SC-INBRE PACD fellowship (P20GM12345 from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences).; CJW was also supported by an Endeavour Research Fellowship (Australian Government Department of Education and Training).

Person of the Issue: John B. Watson (1878-1958)

John B. Watson grew up in South Carolina. While he later described himself as a poor student, he entered Furman University at the age of 16. After graduating five years later with a master’s degree, he began studying psychology at the University of Chicago. Watson earned his Ph.D. in psychology in 1903. According to John Watson, psychology should be the science of observable behavior. “Psychology as the behaviorist views it is a purely objective experimental branch of natural science. Its theoretical goal is the prediction and control of behavior. Introspection forms no essential part of its methods, nor is the scientific value of its data dependent upon the readiness with which they lend themselves to interpretation in terms of consciousness,” he explained (1913).

Muslims and Christians Praying Together, or Not: Some Observations on German Protestant Attitudes toward Common Prayer

One of big often raised by Christian students in many of religion classes taught here at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina, is whether Christians, Muslims, and Jews pray to same While more conservative Protestant American students struggle to answer question one way or another, others do not take too long to respond to question in affirmative. This past year, a Syrian Christian student was perplexed that one would even raise such a question; of course we are praying to same God--Allah in Arabic means nothing more than the God, and all three Abrahamic religions worship same As we live in an increasingly religiously plural world, where our best friends, colleagues, and neighbors are adherents of different religious traditions, desire to pray together with them is becoming ever more pronounced. While learning about faith of our neighbors and friends enriches our understanding of their worldview, praying with them enriches our spiritual horizons and can aid in our appreciation of mystery we call God. Indeed, according to Leonard Swidler's Dialogue Decalogue, praying together is an example of depth or 'spiritual' dimension (of dialogue) where we attempt to experience partner's religion or 'ideology' from within and thus discern values in partner's tradition. (1) In contemporary German context, numerous examples exist of instances of common prayer, often reported in local press. (2) Yet, on level of theology, various documents of Protestant churches in Germany (die Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland, hereafter EKD) are raising questions about possibility and feasibility of such common prayers. In particular, documents issued by EKD after tragic events of Septemberl 11, 2001, suggest that attitude of EKD has toughened on question of whether Christians can pray together with This hardening is regrettable, as it comes at a time when Muslims in Germany have felt more and more excluded; it is also theologically problematic, particularly when compared to relative ease with which Christian-Jewish common prayers have been declared possible and desirable. While ultimately any human explanation of God and God's acceptance of prayer must be but preliminary, an outright rejection of possibility of common prayer is theologically arrogant, as it puts limits on a limitless Furthermore, a theology of hospitality demands a Christian duty to hope (3) for possibility, and also expresses desirability, of common prayer among all three Abrahamic religions. The EKD and Islam While EKD's engagement with Islam has spanned a few decades, and while EKD has issued multiple documents to guide Protestant Christians in their interaction with Muslims, documents from before and after horrific events of 9/11 are particularly telling in way that they reflect EKD's shifting stance on Islam. Regretfully, EKD's overall attitude toward Islam since 2001 has hardened, yet fortunately some documents of recent vintage issued by regional Protestant churches in Germany have become more inclusive and welcoming of common prayer with Thankfully, there is no singular Protestant position (4) of Protestant churches of Germany, and one hopes a more inclusive and open attitude toward Islam and Muslims will prevail in German Protestant thinking. 2000 A year prior to 9/11 attacks, EKD had issued their first, extensive document, Living together with Muslims in Germany: Fashioning Christian Encounters with Muslims. Overall, document is measured in its approach toward Islam; already introduction cautions that equating Islam with Islamism and fanatical ideas provides a distorted picture and that much of Islam is practiced in devoted piety and peaceful humanness. (5) As we will see, this is a much more differentiated characterization of Islam than in 2006 document (hereafter, EKD 86). …

Evaluation of the Promotion of Free School Breakfast on Consumption and Perceptions of School Breakfast in a Rural District

OutcomeMeasures and Analysis: Trained physical education teachers used standardized protocols to measure height and weight of 3rd-5th graders in the fall and spring of the 2012 school year. Data were merged with student socio-demographic factors. Sex-and age-specific BMI percentile was calculated. Multivariate mixed linear models assessed the change in BMI percentile. Results: Youth BMI percentiles changed significantly (p<.05) from fall to spring, increasing by 0.05 for youth participating in CC for 2 years, decreasing by 1.18 for youth participating in CC for 1 year (p<0.05), and increasing by 0.54 for non-CC youth. Conclusions and Implications: Findings indicate initial exposure to CC may be helpful in reducing BMI percentile, but other factors may be involved following the first year. Additional research is necessary to determine the long-term impact of CC on BMI percentile. Funding: Piedmont Health Foundation, NIH NIGMS INBRE, Furman University.

Charles Hard Townes

Charles Hard Townes

Dupaty et l’Italie des voyageurs sensibles éd. par Jan Herman, et al

Reviews 273 d’une providence”(138),and that his descriptive intentions have moved beyond rational analysis towards a more subjective expression of the universe as a “totalité cohérente” (147).Guyot justifies his examination of Chateaubriand’s Itinéraire,already exhaustively studied by others, by the particular focus of his inquiry; indeed, there is an analogous dimension here to the Itinéraire, which by 1811 was already tracing a path well-worn by European travelers.Chateaubriand expresses boredom with the sights he encounters and recognizes that readers’expectations have begun to surpass a pedestrian, chronological narrative of date and place.Accordingly,his analogies depart from the traditional practice of comparing extraordinary phenomena observed by the traveler in foreign lands to familiar counterparts in the land of the reader: Chateaubriand seeks more personal and meaningful correspondences between the present and the past, whether drawing on his own previous travels or his encyclopedic knowledge of Mediterranean history and legend. The focus becomes the author himself: with the moi at the center of the work, Chateaubriand moves the genre firmly into the domain of literary autobiography . Guyot extends his study with a fascinating look at the use of architectural language to describe mountains and glaciers by visitors to Chamonix. Buttressed by Ricœur’s work on metaphor,Guyot asserts that the rehabilitation of figures of similarity comes about from the recognition of their power to stimulate interest and inspire curiosity in a way that sterile scientific fact cannot. While his broad conclusions may surprise no one, Guyot’s meticulously researched book provides a penetrating look into the works in question and amply documents the early development of romantic travel writing as a genre. Furman University (SC) William G. Allen Herman, Jan, Kris Peeters, et Paul Pelckmans, éd. Dupaty et l’Italie des voyageurs sensibles. Amsterdam: Rodopi, 2012. ISBN 978-90-420-3524-9. Pp. 278. 60 a. Using their earlier work about Enlightenment popes as a model, the editors compiled and published submissions from a themed international conference for this volume. The subject concerns mostly nonfictional-inspired accounts of travels in the Italian peninsula during the latter part of the eighteenth century through the opening decades of the nineteenth. Charles Mercier Dupaty (1746–88) is the inspiration of the eighteen essays, even if his name scarcely or never appears in several. Unlike other travelers of his era, he chose to express his impressions rather than solely relate facts about what he saw and did. It is this sensibilité in his Lettres sur l’Italie, published the year of his death, which permeated pre- and post-Revolution writings about the peninsular Grand Tour. The first four pieces deal uniquely with le Président Dupaty. As a magistrate at the Bordeaux parlement, he sought out Italian examples of judicial and legal reform that might motivate institutional change in France. Visits included the usual museums and archeological sites as well as hospitals, jails, and prisons. He was not insensitive to the misery he witnessed and was impressed by reforms enacted by the good prince of Tuscany.Another two contributions discuss specific places. One concerns a practical guidebook of Rome, the Itinerario italiano (1801), and the other examines the attraction of “les âmes sensibles” (97) to Tivoli, a site that evoked nostalgia for antiquity for Dupaty and others. Three essays refer to Italy’s presence in the works of specific Romantic authors.In Madame de Staël’s Corinne (1807) and Madame de Krüdener’s Valérie (1803–04), the culture and climate of the peninsula function as backdrops for the tragedies of love and death. Like Dupaty, Chateaubriand used the letter, not the novel, to convey his impressions. Simple notes juxtaposed with personal reactions comprised his Voyage en Italie, an epistolary memoir of his journey in 1803– 04. The remaining nine essays treat a variety of travel accounts composed primarily by persons not readily recognized. Four stand out for their content and articulate style. By order of Napoleon in 1799, the sculptor Philippe-Laurent Roland went to Italy on an art-scouting/stealing mission. His journal relates both professional and personal details. A comparison between Dupaty’s earlier and Auguste Creuzé de Lesser’s later...

To Swing, Or Not to Swing

"To Swing, Or Not to Swing." Math Horizons, 22(1), pp. 16–17 Additional informationNotes on contributorsTim ChartierTim, Chartier is an associate professor of mathematics and computer science at Davidson College. In the sandlotss outside Philadelphia, he perfected the art of playing with right-handed mitts even as a southpaw. Email: tichartier@davidson.eduJohn HarrisJohn Harris is a professor of mathematics at Furman University. Having struck out many times himself, he certainly felt qualified to contribute to this article. All of those strikeouts were for research purposes. Email: john.harris@furman.eduKevin HutsonKevin Hutson is an associate professor of mathematics at Furman University. Unlike Casey, when faced with (0-2) counts in little league, he perfected the “lean-in” method to get hit by the pitch, ensuring an incredible on-base percentage. Email: kevin.hutson@furman.edu

Starting Scholarly Conversations: A Scholarly Communication Outreach Program

As the scholarly communication system continues to evolve, academic librarians should take an active role in both developing their own knowledge and educating their campus communities about emergent topics. At Furman University, librarians developed an outreach program, aimed primarily at faculty, to increase awareness of current scholarly communication issues. Expert speakers were recruited to present throughout the year on open access, altmetrics, author’s rights, and other relevant topics. This program addressed a number of needs simultaneously— outreach to faculty; education for Furman librarians; and education for the greater library community—and affirmed the importance of providing opportunities to discuss these issues beyond the libraries. The program also further established Furman University Libraries’ role in educating and guiding its campus community through changes in scholarly communication models and practices.

Who Taught You to Talk Like That?: The University and Online Political Discourse

Rancorous dialogue among political opponents is nothing new in the American political system. However, in the past two decades or so, pundits and scholars have noted an increase in the overall intensity and frequency of incivility among elected officials and citizens. At the collegiate level, many universities have undertaken some form of civility initiative to help students learn how to address political conversation in a civil manner. However, these initiatives are problematic in that they may tend to attract those already predisposed to such civility goals and lack in external validity. In this article, we investigate how university communities may be able to use online discussions, particularly spontaneous ones, to address controversial political issues. Using the asynchronous online postings at one liberal arts university, Furman University, in response to a campus visit by George W. Bush, we investigate the nature of political discourse in these unstructured political conversations. Through content analysis, we assess the level of democratic incivility versus impoliteness in the discussion, the role of anonymity in facilitating incivility, and the potential of such online exchanges for use by colleges to help socialize young people into how to engage in effective and civil political discourse.

Questioning Modernity, Affirming Resilience: Eco-pedagogies for Anacristina Rossi's La loca de Gandoca and Homero Aridjis's ¿En quién piensas cuando haces el amor?

Click to increase image sizeClick to decrease image size Additional informationNotes on contributorsLaura Barbas RhodenLaura Barbas Rhoden is Associate Professor of Foreign Languages & Coordinator of the Spanish program at Wofford College. She is the author of Women in Central American Literature (2003), Ecological Imaginations in Latin American Fiction (2011), and numerous articles on contemporary Latin American literatureSofía KearnsSofía Kearns is Professor of Spanish at Furman University. She has published articles on contemporary Latin American women's literature. Her several publications on the prose of Anacristina Rossi examine the intersection of gender, sexuality, race, and nation

Spatial characterization and analysis of the campus residential waste stream at a small private Liberal Arts Institution

The generation and management of solid waste on college campuses have presented challenges to pursuing institutional sustainability. Characterizing, analyzing, and understanding the composition of a campus’ residential waste stream is a critical first step toward developing successful and effective waste management strategies across university campuses. This study presents a multi-year (2008–2011) assessment of the composition and spatial variability of the residential waste stream, by both weight and volume, at Furman University, a small private Liberal Arts Institution in Greenville, SC, United States. Waste audits were conducted on a dumpster by dumpster basis over the three-year period, with garbage being sorted into eight separate waste categories. Of the total 587.4kg and 14.8m3 of residential waste sampled, 25% by weight and 41% by volume could have been recycled under the university's current waste management program, and 61% by weight and 63% by volume could have been diverted from the landfill through a combination of the university's recycling plan, the county's recycling program, and the composting of food waste. Distinct spatial differences were found in the composition of the waste stream with regards to the glass, compost material, and cardboard content among the different housing complexes. Our analysis found the observed variability to be the result of differences in the age and class of the student residents, the meal plans of the residents, social patterns of alcohol consumption within the residence halls, and the presence or absence and quantity of kitchens in each building. Design of an efficient waste management program requires not only an assessment of the waste stream, but also an understanding of the mechanisms and behaviors responsible for generating this garbage. The utility of site specific audits lies within their ability to capture these spatial differences in campus residential waste streams, allowing for specific recommendations for individual residential buildings on strategies for minimizing waste and improving recycling efforts.

Introduction

Introduction E. Bert Wallace My involvement with the Southeastern Theatre Conference Theatre Symposium stretches back in some ways to its beginnings. The first Symposium conference was held in April 1992 with Dr. Philip G. Hill of Furman University as editor. I was a drama major at Furman under Dr. Hill, graduating in May of that year. That first conference was held at The University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa; the topic was "Commedia dell'Arte Performance." I later attended graduate school at Alabama under Dr. Paul Castagno, a commedia scholar and one of the founders of Theatre Symposium. Among my duties as Paul's harried graduate assistant were transcribing tinny audio recordings of the conference proceedings and implementing final changes for Volume 4 of Theatre Symposium, which Paul edited. My first scholarly presentation was at a Symposium. And, two decades after the first conference, I was named editor for Volume 20. The 2011 conference was held in April at Furman, with Dr. Hill (now a Professor Emeritus and "Phil" to me) serving as de facto host. It would have been difficult to imagine, as I sweated through Phil's theatre history and dramatic literature classes, where I'd be twenty years hence. The 2011 topic, "Gods and Groundlings: Historical Theatrical Audiences," drew an interesting range of presenters and approaches. Of course, not every paper can be published (for a variety of reasons), but the presented papers not published in this volume deserve some mention. As a longtime fan of the theatre riot (I am fascinated by the Astor Place Riots, which I first learned about under Dr. Hill while at Furman, and was myself in a near-riot sparked by the apparent shredding of [End Page 5] a live goldfish on stage while I was at Alabama), I was most pleased to hear several papers on audience violence: Sebastian Trainor (University of Washington) shattered my romantic notions about the Ubu Riots; Rick Jones (Stephen F. Austin State University) and Peter DuPuis dealt variously with Irish hooliganism in the theatre; and Wes D. Pearce of the University of Regina gave us a marvelous account of a Victorian-era riot involving the ladies of New York and a limited supply of free "Merry Widow" hats to be given away at a matinee. Other papers included a consideration of vaudeville and music hall audiences by former editor Susan Kattwinkel (College of Charleston); a discussion of producing and performing in a traveling Toby Show by Dawn Larson (Francis Marion University); an evaluation of Early Modern and contemporary audiences by Jeremy Fiebig (Fayetteville State University); and presentations by Sivan Grunfeld and Rayya El Zein, both of the CUNY Graduate Center. The papers published in this volume represent a similarly wide range. This year's keynote speaker was Dr. Susan Bennett (University of Calgary), whose work (including the influential book Theatre Audiences: A Theory of Production and Reception) was cited by numerous presenters. In keeping with the spirit of the conference, Dr. Bennett attended all the sessions and held a conference response and discussion at the end of the event. Her insights were invaluable. Her paper is published in this volume as well. One of the most valuable aspects of Theatre Symposium is the chance for scholars from all over the country (and often other countries as well) to learn from one another in an intimate setting with a single topic and no overlapping sessions. In addition to hearing everyone's work, we share meals, allowing discussions to continue and grow. Though the conference was organized into topical panels of two or three papers each, no attempt has been made to categorize the papers here. Rather, it is my hope that the value of a conference of scholars coming together to wrestle over a specific topic will be clear in the variety and quality of the papers published. I must give special thanks to Phil Hill for his inestimable help—as editorial advisor, "leg man" at Furman, and, along with his wife, Margie, magnanimous cocktail-party host. Thanks also go to former editors J. K. Curry and Scott Phillips for all their help and support; Rhett Bryson of Furman University (another significant mentor from my undergraduate days...

Charles Townes—Nobel Laureate for Maser-Laser Work

The American physicist Charles Hard Townes shared the 1964 Nobel Prize in Physics with 2 Soviet physicists, Aleksandr M. Prokhorov (1916-2002) and his student Nikolay G. Basov (1922-2001), for fundamental work in the field of quantum electronics, which led to the construction of oscillators and amplifiers on the maserlaser principle. Townes conceived the idea of the maser in 1951 and built the first device in 1953. The Soviet scientists, working independently of Townes, provided much of the theoretical work for lasers and masers. These devices have applications as widely varied as high-resolution spectroscopy, length standards, surgery, welding, radar, and communications. Townes, the fourth of 6 children of an attorney, was born on July 28, 1915, on a farm outside Greenville, SC. He attended Furman University in his hometown, receiving both the BS degree in physics and the BA degree in modern languages in 1935, graduating summa cum laude. He then enrolled in Duke University in Durham, NC, and received the MSc degree in physics in 1937. Next, he spent 2 years at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, where he was awarded the PhD degree in physics, in 1939, for his thesis on “The Separation of Isotopes and the Determination of the Spin of the Nucleus of Carbon 13.” After receiving his doctoral degree, Townes joined the technical staff of the Bell Telephone Company in New Jersey and worked with that group from 1939 to 1947. During World War II (1939-1945), while with Bell Laboratories, Townes worked on radar bombing systems and microwave spectroscopy and did some early work on radio astronomy. In 1948, Townes joined the faculty of Columbia University in New York City as a teacher of physics. By 1950, he was director of the Columbia Radiation Laboratory, and in 1952, he became chair of the physics department of Columbia University. In 1951, he first had the idea of what would culminate in the construction of a maser ( icrowave amplification by timulated mission of radiation). The first maser device, which used ammonia gas, was built in December 1953. In 1958, Townes and a colleague outlined the principle of the optical maser, or laser. They speculated that a maser could deliver infrared or even visible light instead of microwaves. In 1960, such a device was constructed by the American physicist Theodore H. Maiman (1927-2007), who used a pink ruby rod that emitted intermittent bursts of red light. The device was called “laser” for light amplified by timulated mission of radiation. Lasers were soon used in medicine (certain eye operations), chemical analysis (vaporized small bits of substances for spectroscopic analysis), communications, metal working, instrumentation and measurement, and art and by the military. From 1959 to 1961, while on a leave of absence from Columbia University, Townes served as vice president and director of research at the Institute for Defense Analyses in Washington, DC, where he was concerned with problems of national defense and foreign policy. In 1961, Townes officially left Columbia University and joined the faculty of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, where he was appointed provost and professor of physics. He directed research in nonlinear optics until 1967. In 1967, Townes was appointed professor at the University of California at Berkeley. He initiated a program in radio and infrared astronomy, which led to the discovery of complex molecules (ammonia and water) in the interstellar medium. In 1986, Townes was made professor emeritus. Townes was honored on stamps issued by St Vincent in 1991 (Scott No. 1563d) and by Madagascar in 1993.

Engaging Incoming First-Year Students: Lessons Learned from a Sustainability Orientation Session

On many college and university campuses across the United States, one of the largest barriers to sustainability is the lack of engagement from students. Furman University in Greenville, South Carol...

Secession Era Editorials Project

Secession Era Editorials Project

Furman University 2006 President's Report on Sustainability

Furman University 2006 President's Report on Sustainability

Pedagogy and Latin American Cultural Studies

The purpose of this session was to share our method of reshaping the traditional curriculum of the Latin American Studies seminar at Furman University to incorporate interdis ciplinary and cultural studies paradigms. Our primary objective in this seminar is to enable undergraduates to interpret modern Latin America (since 1800) from the perspective of Cultural Studies. We are currently teaching our Latin American Studies capstone seminar as a genuinely interdisciplinary seminar, highly stimulating to students and colleagues alike, and are eager to continue the rigorous process. While interdisciplinarity can be and has been defined in disparate manners, we conceive of the interdisciplinary endeavor not simply as the combining of separate fields of knowledge into one course of study in order to provide a more complete understanding of the issues covered but also, and perhaps more importantly, as an intellectual dialogue between disciplines, whereby each field is subjected to the critical rigors of the others. That is, we believe that a genuinely interdisciplinary framework must both interrogate differences across disciplines as well as de territorialize the pursuit of knowledge acquisition. Thus, we have envisioned the curricular foundation of IDS 75 as the viewing of literature and film in a historical context, and the consideration of historical analysis as a form of textual dis course. In exploring the intersections of history, literature, and film, we ask our students to consider how historical, literary, and filmic narratives at once construct as well as contest identities. More specifically, we studied historical film alongside the historical novel of the post independence period as a means to demonstrate the ways in which discourses of history form an integral component of the creation and practice of the modern Latin American citizen-subject. One of the keys to our success has been to employ interdisciplinarity in both form and con tent. That is, through consistent dialogue and preparation in tandem, we feel we have created a space for optimum intellectual growth for our students and for ourselves. Given that we have made the commitment to meet regularly outside of class, as well as attend every session of the seminar throughout the term, the students benefit from each of our unique talents and approaches, as well the opportunity to integrate our contributions. Likewise, we have been immensely pleased by what we would describe as access to a kind of daily pedagogical workshop, necessarily sharing teaching techniques and expertise, which then become highly successful vehicles to diversifying our methods and content in other courses.