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WOMEN'S
CENTER EVENTS
PROTEIN
IN EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS CONTROLS MALIGNANT TUMOR CELLS
A protein that governs development of human embryonic stem cells also inhibits
the growth and spread of malignant melanoma, the deadliest skin cancer, Northwestern
researchers led by Professor Mary J.C. Hendrix have discovered.
RESEARCHERS
USE VIRTUAL PEERS IN WORKING WITH AUTISTIC CHILDREN
Using "virtual peers" -- animated life-sized children that simulate
the behaviors and conversation of typically developing children -- Northwestern
researchers led by Professor Justine Cassell are developing interventions designed
to prepare children with autism for interactions with real-life children.
YOUR
BRAIN ON KRISPY KREMES
New research led by Professor Marsel Mesulam reveals how hunger works in the
brain and the way neurons pull your strings to lunge for the sweet fried dough.
Krispy Kremes, in perhaps their first starring role in neurological research,
helped lead to the discovery.
Audio:
Aprajita Mohanty, post-doctoral fellow at the Feinberg School of Medicine,
discusses research that reveals how hunger works in the brain.
ANN ADAMS NAMED TO RESEARCH INTEGRITY POST
Ann Adams has rejoined Northwestern as Associate Vice President for Research
Integrity and Director of the Office for Research Integrity. She will lead
the Office for Research Integrity in its ongoing efforts to ensure that Northwestern's
culture embraces exemplary integrity and compliance in its research activities.
PNAS
PAPER, AUTHORS HONORED FOR SCIENTIFIC EXCELLENCE
The editors of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences have awarded
a paper by Monica Olvera de la Cruz and _Graziano Vernizzi from the department
of materials science and engineering the prestigious 2007 Cozzarelli Prize.
LAW SCHOOL EXPANDS HUMAN RIGHTS PROGRAM
Darfur. Abu Ghraib. Myanmar. Occupied territories. Those words hint at the
myriad controversies that have led to increased attention to international
human rights. In response to the heightened interest and many inquiries from
American lawyers, the School of Law is expanding its program in international
human rights and criminal law.
Women's Sports:
TOP-RANKED LACROSSE OPENS CONFERENCE PLAY
No. 1 Northwestern (5-0) travels to Columbus to open its 2008 American Lacrosse
Conference schedule against Ohio State March 14. The Wildcats then return home
to face Massachusetts March 16 at Lakeside Field.
NO. 1 WOMEN'S TENNIS WINS, RESTS
Top-ranked Northwestern (13-1, 3-0) won its seventh-consecutive dual match
in a 6-1 victory over Harvard last weekend. The Wildcats improve to 13-1 this
season and are now on a two-week hiatus before resuming play March 25.
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Events & News
from the Women's Center
Click
here for more information on all of the upcoming events
listed and more.
Tuesday, April 22 was Equal Pay Day, the annual symbolic
day on which women's average wages catch up to men's
from the previous year. For the average woman's salary
to equal that of a man in 2007, she would have had to
work from Jan. 1, 2007, until April 22, 2008. See what
the pay gap for college-educated women is in your state.
Expectant Moms Delay Maternity Leave, Work Longer
According to the Christian Science Monitor, working pregnant women are taking
maternity leave closer to their due dates today than in the past. The 2003
Census showed that approximately 80 percent of pregnant women in the U.S.
stay working until one month or less before their due dates. This can be
compared to 35 percent in 1965. They noted that the need for income and the
pressure to show commitment to their jobs were most likely the driving forces
behind this.
The article compared our current law regarding maternity leave – the
Family and Medical Leave Act, which guarantees 12 weeks of unpaid leave – with
that of European countries. There are significant differences as, for example,
France not only offers more time off, but requires a minimum of 8 weeks of
paid maternity leave.
Girls Interested in Politics and Advocacy this Election
Year
Eight in ten girls ages 8 to 17 are interested in this upcoming presidential
election, according to the Girl Scout Research Institute. Their research also
found that nearly half of all girls surveyed said they were interested because
a woman was running, while only a quarter said their interest was based on
the issues. While nearly 75 percent said the country still needs to focus on
gender equality and racial equality, 9 percent felt racial and gender equality
have been achieved. Nearly 86 percent of the girls see themselves as advocates.
Senate Recognizes Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month
On April 23, the Senate passed, by unanimous consent, a resolution (S. Con.
Res. 77) supporting the goals and ideals of “National Sexual Assault
Awareness and Prevention Month.”
Sponsored by Sen. Robert Casey (D-PA), the resolution contains a number of
findings, including:
on average, a person is sexually assaulted in the United States every two-and-a-half
minutes;
the Department of Justice reports that 191,670 people in the United States
were sexually assaulted in 2005;
one in six women and one in thirty-three men have been victims of rape or attempted
rape;
children and young adults are most at risk of sexual assault, as 44 percent
of sexual assault victims are under the age of 18, and 80 percent are under
the age of 30;
two-thirds of sexual crimes are committed by persons who are not strangers
to the victims;
prevention education programs carried out by rape crisis and women’s
health centers have the potential to reduce the prevalence of sexual assault
in their communities; and
because of recent advances in DNA technology, law enforcement agencies now
have the potential to identify the rapists in tens of thousands of unsolved
rape cases.
The resolution recognizes that “it is appropriate to properly acknowledge
the more than 20 million men and women who have survived sexual assault in
the United States and salute the efforts of survivors, volunteers, and professionals
who combat sexual assault” and “public safety, law enforcement,
and health professionals should be recognized and applauded for their hard
work and innovative strategies to increase the percentage of sexual assault
cases that result in the prosecution and incarceration of the offenders.”
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