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| CURES AND CARES: St. Louis Children's Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine announced a unique and bold partnership aimed at curing some of the deadliest diseases attacking our nation's children. The collaboration, called The Children's Discovery Institute, will focus on accelerating cures for childhood disease in four areas: congenital heart disease, cancer, lung and respiratory disorders, and musculoskeletal diseases.
 THE NAME GAME: During the Spirit rover's exploration of Mars, many features of the red planet are being seen for the first time. And all these "new" sites need names. As the latest features are discovered, the Mars Exploration Rover mission team, several of whom are based at Washington University, give a name to each place, often to honor colleagues or to celebrate mythical figures of various cultures.
TUITION SET FOR 2006-2007 SCHOOL YEAR: Undergraduate tuition at Washington University will total $32,800 for the 2006-07 academic year, a 5.5 percent increase over current tuition. In a letter to parents and students, Edward S. Macias, Ph.D., executive vice chancellor, dean of Arts & Sciences, and the Barbara and David Thomas Distinguished Professor in Arts & Sciences, said, "Our increases reflect the nationwide cost pressures on colleges and universities, including some costs that are rising in ways obvious to all of us — such as energy and employee health benefits."
Research
NEW DATE, NEW NEANDERTAL?: Two Neandertal fossils excavated from Vindija Cave in Croatia in 1998, believed to be the last surviving Neandertals, may be 3,000-4,000 years older than originally thought. An international team of researchers, including Erik Trinkaus, Ph.D., the Mary Tileston Hemenway Professor of Anthropology in Arts & Sciences, has redated the two Neandertals from Vindija Cave. These new fossil ages still document a substantial chronological overlap between Neandertals and modern humans, but primarily the work highlights the currently tenuous nature of scenarios of modern human dispersals in Europe.
COMMON BLOOD THINNER INCREASES RISK OF BONE FRACTURE: Elderly patients taking the commonly prescribed blood thinner warfarin experience an increased risk for osteoporosis-linked bone fractures, according to a study at Washington University School of Medicine. The results suggest physicians should carefully monitor the bone health of patients placed on the medication, and their patients should take steps to decrease the risk of osteoporosis.
 DETECTORS FOR COMPULSIVE GAMBLING: More than 80 percent of the U.S. population gambles at some time in their lives. It might be the lottery, bingo, or poker. Little is known about why people gamble and how to predict who is likely to become a pathological gambler, but researchers at the School of Medicine and the George Warren Brown School of Social Work have developed a diagnostic tool for identifying pathological gambling disorder, and they're beginning to learn who is at risk and what causes the problems.
Features
SCHOOL OF LAW PROFESSOR WINS CASE IN THE SUPREME COURT: The United States Supreme Court ruled unanimously on January 9 in favor of a Georgia inmate in a disability rights case, United States v. Georgia. Samuel R. Bagenstos, J.D., professor of law, argued the case on behalf of the inmate, Tony Goodman. The ruling paves the wave for Goodman to seek damages against the state of Georgia.
 NEW DIABETES EDUCATION PROGRAM GEARED TO AFRICAN-AMERICAN WOMEN: While culturally traditional foods are a big part of the African-American heritage, they also are a significant factor in the type 2 diabetes epidemic among African-American women, and diabetes nutrition education programs have been relatively unsuccessful in attracting and retaining African-American women. However, a new study shows that there is a way to reach members of this population and make a positive impact on their dietary behavior.
LITTLE CROONERS: Scientists have known for decades that female lab mice or their pheromones cause male lab mice to make ultrasonic vocalizations. But a new paper from researchers at Washington University School of Medicine establishes for the first time that the utterances of the male mice are songs
Heard on Campus
"...I believe Martin Luther King, Jr., was a doer more than he was a dreamer. He knew — as all of us must or should come to understand — that a dream without doing is to become complacent if not irrelevant."
— Maragret Bush Wilson in her address, "More than a Dream," during the Commemoration Celebration honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday January 17 in Graham Chapel
Kudos
The Financial Times ranked professors at the John M. Olin School of Business tenth in the world in terms of research productivity.
Adrian Luchini, the Raymond E. Maritz Professor of Architecture, won a mixed-use development design competition for the city of Wuhan in the People's Republic of China. Professor Luchini was assisted by Pablo Moyano Fernandez, GA04, and Catalina Freixas, Affiliate Assistant Professor of Architecture. The winning design was selected from five finalists, submitted by firms in China, Thailand, Australia, and the United States.
Cynthia Wolken, JD06, has been chosen to receive a Skadden Fellowship to design a model program for the Montana Legal Services Association that will combat trafficking in women and children.
WUSTL Links
About @ Washington University in St. Louis
This newsletter is prepared by Special Development Communications Projects staff in Alumni and Development Programs. It is intended to provide a brief summary of what is happening at the University. Alumni, parents, and friends of the University for whom we have valid e-mail addresses automatically receive @ Washington University in St. Louis.
Copyright 2005, Washington University in St. Louis
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