Some people can see your eyes, your nose, your mouth - and still not recognize your face. These people, who suffer from what is known as prosopagnosia, may help scientists unlock the mysteries of the brain. Professor of Cognitive and Linguistic Sciences Michael Tarr offers his perspective about what is occuring in brains of such people. Tarr is a leading proponents of an alternative theory for how the brain recognizes faces.
www.wired.com/wired/archive/14.11/blind.html

Professor of Computer Science Andy van Dam discusses the Brown University-Microsoft research partnership to advance pen-centric computing.
Paid subscriptions: www.thes.co.uk/search/story.aspx?story_id=2032835

Professor of Medical Science Constantine Gatsonis is one of the leaders of the National Lung Screening Trial, in which about 50,000 current or former smokers are being randomly assigned to receive three annual CAT scans or chest X-rays. Gatsonis comments on new reports that it is possible to find a large number of "silent" cancers in the lungs of heavy smokers by periodically screening them with CAT scans.
Free registration: www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/25/AR2006102501397.html

African-American Medicare patients fare worse than whites even when they belong to the same health plan, according to a study led by Amal Trivedi, assistant professor in the Department of Community Health.
www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2006/10/25/racial_divide_found_across_health_plans/
See news release: www.brown.edu/Administration/News_Bureau/2006-07/06-039.html

"South Side: The Gains and Strains of Diversity," a short film by Associate Professor of Sociology Hilary Silver and students about the changing South Providence neighborhood, aired on Rhode Island’s PBS television station. The film is part of the NEH/RI Council for the Humanities series, "Here at Home: What Unites/Divides Us?"

Michael Wyatt, assistant professor of geological sciences, comments on new findings suggesting that an ocean of water once wrapped around Mars.
www.newscientist.com/article/dn10389-soil-minerals-point-to-planetwide-ocean-on-mars.html

Mayor David N. Cicilline criticizes Brown University’s decision to buy seven buildings in the city’s Jewelry District, saying the university could have used its resources to invest in distressed neighborhoods such as South Providence.
Free registration: www.projo.com/ri/providence/content/mcdebate27_10-27-06_DM2J2T3.338f76f.html
See news release: www.brown.edu/Administration/News_Bureau/2006-07/06-043.html

A study of students at Brown University and Purdue University found they gained about 3.5 kilograms (seven pounds) during first year, and their weight kept going up during third year. The study is believed to be the most comprehensive yet of weight-gaining patterns of college freshmen, said author Elizabeth Lloyd-Richardson, assistant professor of psychiatry and human behavior.

James Tilton, director of performance, improvement, and procedures at the U.S. Department of Education, has been named Brown University’s new director of financial aid. Tilton will begin his duties at Brown Dec. 4, 2006.
www.brown.edu/Administration/News_Bureau/2006-07/06-045.html

The Watson Institute for International Studies has launched the Global Security Matrix, a web-based analytical and educational tool that visually represents threats to security. James Der Derian, director of the institute’s Global Security Program, led the project to develop the tool, which is available at http://www.globalsecuritymatrix.org.
www.brown.edu/Administration/News_Bureau/2006-07/06-046.html