Newsletter Volume 7 Issue 6 November 18, 2020 |
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Our next Lunch Colloquiums are just as diverse, with Jim Nagy talking about the mathematics of imaging and Deboleena Roy talking about being a neuroscientist, molecular biologist, and feminist theorist. It is difficult to imagine any of us not learning something from those next two talks!
I am very grateful to Gretchen Schulz, Ann Hartle, and Marge Crouse for help with editing and proofing.
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Lunch Colloquium - Monday, November 23
Jim Nagy
"Mathematics and Imaging"
Please scroll to read more below
Lunch Colloquium - Monday, November 30
Deboleena Roy
“Biophilosophies of Becoming”
Please scroll to read more below
Report - Lunch Colloquium - Monday, November 2
Laurence Sperling
“Heart Healthy Dietary Patterns: A Recipe for Life”
Please scroll to read more below
Report - Lunch Colloquium - Tuesday, November 10
Yawei Liu
“What Is the Next Chapter in U.S.-China Relations?”
Please scroll to read more below
Faculty Activities
Nanette Wenger, Perry Sprawls, and Oded Borowski
Please scroll to read more below
In Memoriam
We note the death of Robert Franch, one of our "Circle of 100" Founding Members
Please scroll to read more below
Walking the Campus with Dianne
Please scroll to read more below
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Lunch Colloquium, Monday, November 23, 2020 |
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"Mathematics and Imaging"
Jim Nagy
Samuel Candler Dobbs Professor and Chair,
Department of Mathematics, Emory University
Zoom Meeting
11:30 am - 1:00 pm
Image processing is a very important field of research. At Emory University, a particular focus is on applications in medical imaging. Any medical imaging device (computed tomography, MRI, ultrasound, etc.) requires significant computational work to solve complicated mathematical equations to obtain the final image used by doctors. In addition, mathematical and computational techniques are used to manipulate images. For example, to monitor cancer growth over time, doctors often need to align images of the same object that have different orientations. In this presentation, Jim Nagy, Professor and Chair of the Department of Mathematics, will describe some important research activities in medical imaging, particularly the work being done by faculty and students in Emory’s mathematics department. But we might note that this is not a mathematics talk. The only prerequisite is the ability to add, multiply, and divide two numbers. Or maybe the ability to repeat: person, woman, man, camera, TV.
About Jim Nagy:
Jim Nagy is the Samuel Candler Dobbs Professor and Chair of the Mathematics Department at Emory and a leader in the field of using mathematics and scientific computation to sharpen blurry images, for everything from medical to security applications. He is also known for his work in numerical linear algebra as well as both inverse and ill-posed problems. Jim has written over 100 research articles and co-authored two books, Image Deblurring (SIAM Press, 2006) and Introduction to Scientific Computing Using MatLab (Lulu, 2011).
Jim earned a BS and MS from Northern Illinois University and his PhD from North Carolina State University in 1991. He left Southern Methodist University to come to Emory in 1999.
Jim's honors include being elected a Fellow of the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM), as well as Vice President for programs, Chair of the SIAM linear algebra activity group, and Chair of the Householder Committee (the most prestigious symposium on numerical linear algebra). He also serves on several editorial boards.
However, some of his friends and colleagues think the most impressive line on his vita notes his 3rd place finish on the Still Rings at the 1986 NCAA National Championships.
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Lunch Colloquium, Monday, November 30, 2020 |
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“Biophilosophies of Becoming”
Deboleena Roy
Senior Associate Dean of Faculty, Emory College of Arts and Sciences, Professor of Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology and Women's, Gender,
and Sexuality Studies
Zoom Meeting
11:30 am - 1:00 pm
"Should feminists clone?" "What do neurons think about?" "How can we learn from bacterial writing?" These and other provocative questions have long preoccupied neuroscientist, molecular biologist, and intrepid feminist theorist Deboleena Roy, who takes seriously the capabilities of lab "objects" – bacteria and other human, nonhuman, organic, and inorganic actants – in order to understand processes of becoming that have typically been ignored or purposely not addressed. In her talk “Biophilosophies of Becoming,” Roy investigates science as feminism at the lab bench, engaging in interdisciplinary conversations among molecular biology, Deleuzian philosophies, posthumanism, and postcolonial and decolonial studies that can create new social orders through horizontal social movements. She brings insights from feminist theory together with lessons learned from bacteria, subcloning, and synthetic biology, arguing that renewed interest in matter and materiality must be accompanied by a feminist rethinking of scientific research methods and techniques.
About Deboleena Roy:
Dr. Deboleena Roy received her PhD in reproductive neuroendocrinology and molecular biology from the Institute of Medical Science at the University of Toronto. She was a visiting scholar at the Pembroke Center for Teaching and Research on Women at Brown University and has held faculty fellowships at the Clayman Institute for Gender Research at Stanford University and the Fox Center for Humanistic Inquiry at Emory University. Dr. Roy is Professor of Emory’s Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, as well as Professor of Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology. She is currently serving as the Senior Associate Dean of Faculty for Emory College of Arts and Sciences.
Dr. Roy’s research centers on the development of feminist practices that contribute to scientific inquiry in the lab. Her areas of research and teaching include neuroscience, molecular biology, feminist science and technology studies, feminist theory, postcolonial studies, and reproductive justice movements. Dr. Roy has published numerous journal articles and contributed to several anthologies. Her most recent book is entitled Molecular Feminisms: Biology, Becomings, and Life in the Lab. As one reviewer of this book states, “Molecular Feminisms is a joyful book thrumming with the pleasure of intellectual adventure . . . a celebration of interdisciplinary scholarship and an affirmation of the generativity of scholars reaching across research domains.” Virtually all aspects of Dr. Roy’s work reflect who she is as a scholar and researcher, what one colleague describes as an “an expert natural scientist as well as an intrepid feminist theorist.”
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Lunch Colloquium Report -- Monday, November 2, 2020 |
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“Heart Healthy Dietary Patterns: A Recipe for Life”
Laurence Sperling
Katz Professor in Preventive Cardiology, Professor of Global Health in the Rollins School of Public Health, Founder of The Emory Heart Disease Prevention Center
Our first Lunch Colloquium in November, on Monday, the 2nd, was an outstanding and highly informative one of great interest and concern to us all. Among his many titles, Laurence Sperling is Katz Professor in Preventive Cardiac Medicine, Professor of Global Health in the Rollins School of Public Health, and founder and Director of the Heart Disease Prevention Center of Emory University. He is also Director of the Million Hearts Initiative at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an initiative that aims to save one million lives in five years by reducing heart- based problems.
In his presentation, entitled "Heart Healthy Dietary Patterns: A Recipe for Life," he addressed four major questions:
1. What is the difference between diet and dietary pattern?
2. What constitutes a heart-healthy dietary pattern?
3. Why is there less focus today on the food pyramid and greater emphasis on "my plate"?
4. What is and why have a "recipe for life"?
He began to answer these questions by pointing out that the quest for healthy dietary patterns is not new. In fact, Ludovicus Nonnius (1553 - 1646) wrote what is perhaps the first book on the subject—and perhaps it was knowing what he did about the subject that allowed him to live such a long life.
Dr. Sperling noted that it is important for doctors to recognize food-related and other behavioral factors leading to a healthy life rather than just reacting to the onset of disease after such factors have led to ill health. Clearly, if we can prevent disease, we are all ahead of the game.
The Million Hearts initiative he is now involved with has three major components. The first is prevention, keeping people healthy. To accomplish this, the aim is to reduce sodium intake, decrease tobacco use, and decrease inactivity. The second component is optimizing care. Here the aim is an increase in the use of cardiac rehab when there is a problem and engaging such patients in heart-healthy behaviors. The tools in this area include aspirin when appropriate, blood pressure control, cholesterol management, and smoking cessation. The third component is improving outcomes of prevention and treatment for priority populations. This includes African Americans with hypertension, people 35 to 64 years old, and people who have had a heart attack or stroke.
Statistics show that only 3.3% of Americans have ideal cardiovascular (CV) health, while 9.9% have poor CV health. There are large disparities in CV health, based on age, gender, ethnicity, and education. Dr. Sperling noted that the best predictor of problems is your zip code. In fact, if you live in Buckhead, your life expectancy is 84 years, while if you live in East Point, it is only 73 years, and in Bankhead, only 71 years. Data also show a large percentage of Americans are at risk for developing diabetes—often for the same reasons so many are at risk for developing heart disease. The lifetime risk for diabetes is also highest for Hispanics and then Blacks, a disparity that holds true for both men and women. And one cannot just tell people living in problem zip codes to eat better. There are "food deserts,” areas where there is low access to good food as well as people with low incomes. The Atlanta food desert map shows a surprisingly large number of such areas.
What is the recipe for optimal CV health? As just noted, socio-economic determinants play a large role in CV health. Family predispositions can play a big role, too. So can psychosocial factors. Controlling lipids and hypertension and diabetes, if they are problems, is important. And, of course, as emphasized in the Million Hearts Initiative described above, decreasing (or, better, quitting) smoking and increasing activity can make a big difference. But Dr. Sperling focused most of his remaining remarks on heart-healthy dietary patterns.
He made the point that basic dietary guidelines on consumption of fat, carbohydrates, and protein should be followed. Fat intake should be controlled to at most 15% (33g for a 2000 cal diet). It is particularly important to avoid trans fats as they have been shown to increase LDL and TGs while also decreasing HDL and also are tied to increases in sudden death. We should choose whole grains rather than processed grains. And we should avoid simple sugars. And, of course, we should keep our sodium intake low.
But, knowing we in his audience would have many questions about particular popular diets, Dr. Sperling soon turned to that subject. And since he has long served on the US News & World Report panel of dietary experts who analyze and rank popular diets each year, he is well qualified to do so.
He spoke at some length about the Mediterranean Diet that is often ranked the best, but noted that the Dash diet, the Atkins diet, and the Weight Watchers regimen also routinely rank high. On the other hand, he noted more than 95% of people who lose weight on fad diets simply gain it back.
What are the key components of the Mediterranean Diet? The base is bread, pasta, rice, couscous, polenta, and other whole grains, and potatoes. The next level consists of fruits, vegetables, and nuts, then olive oil, cheese, and yogurt. These are the daily food choices. Weekly choices include fish, poultry, eggs, and sweets, with monthly choices of meat. All this with wine in moderation. In studies, the Mediterranean diet has shown itself to be better than other diets at CV problem prevention.
The Dash diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) features high amounts of fruits and vegetables combined with low amounts of saturated fat and high amounts of calcium and potassium. The Dash diet leaves sodium intake and body weight constant.
Of course, whatever diet or dietary pattern we choose to adopt, the quality and quantity of the foods we consume are important, too. Supersizing may be a big ad campaign, but fast food is a bad idea as it’s almost always true that calories increase and quality decreases. For example, Hardee’s Monster Thickburger has 1420 calories and contains 107g of fat.
In summary, it is important to keep a healthy eating pattern across your lifetime. Your focus should be on variety, nutrient density, and appropriate amounts. You should limit calories from added sugars and saturated fats, and reduce salt intake (bearing in mind the high levels of salt in processed foods and restaurant foods), and you should eat foods made with whole grains rather than processed grains. The good news (good in the sense of umm-umm-good)? If this is your normal dietary pattern, you can on occasion treat yourself to something outside that pattern . . . sugars, fats, salt, and processed grains be damned. Chocolate cake anyone?
--Ron Gould
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Lunch Colloquium Report -- Tuesday, November 10, 2020 |
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“What Is the Next Chapter in U.S.-China Relations?”
Yawei Liu
Director, China Program, Carter Center, Adjunct Professor of Political Science, Emory University, Associate Director of the China Research Center in Atlanta
At the Emeritus College Lunch Colloquium on Tuesday, November 10, Yawei Liu, Director of the China Program at the Carter Center and Adjunct Professor of Political Science, gave a frank assessment of U.S.–China relations, both past and present. Under the general topic of what is next in U.S.-China relations, he asked three questions. How did the U.S. lose China? How did China lose the U.S.? Could the two still rediscover each other?
It is clear that current relations with China are not good and getting worse. Professor Liu indicated that China is widely seen in the U.S. as a threat. Congress has introduced several laws to address this threat such as the TAIPEI (Taiwan Allies International Protection and Enhancement) Act of 2019. These are interpreted in China as dangerous in their possible consequences. For example, China considers Taiwan part of China and quite recently has indicated that it will use force if Taiwan goes too far towards independence. This potentially dangerous situation has been exacerbated by President Trump’s America First policy. Professor Liu said that it is clear that Trump has only cared about trade with China—not Taiwan, human rights, or Hong Kong—until the COVID-19 pandemic for which, of course, he blames China. Trump’s rhetoric and that of Secretary of State Pompeo make it clear that the Administration has abandoned the previous policy of engagement with China. For example, a proposed law would bar Chinese Communist party leaders or their family members from entering the U.S. Professor Liu suggests this is a result of confusion in trying to differentiate between the “party” and the “people.” In fact there are probably 300-400 million Chinese Communist party members and their families who would then be unable to enter the U.S. under this law. This would likely exclude all Chinese academics and students. Another provocative action was the closing of a Chinese consulate causing China to retaliate by closing the U.S. consulate in Cheng Du. Ongoing insistence that the Chinese owners of TikTok and Wechat give up ownership to operate in the U.S. is another source of friction.
After this sobering review of the current state of relations, Professor Liu turned to the history of China-U.S. interaction. The first merchant ship sailed to China in 1789. Chinese goods, such as tea, had long flowed into Europe. (As he pointed out, when Christopher Columbus set out from Europe, it was to find another route to China, and instead he “found” the American continent.) Other traders followed that first merchant ship, and the missionaries followed them. The first US treaty with China was in 1844. Although there was often conflict as the Chinese grew alarmed, particularly at the missionary activities, relations continued, however uneasily, for the rest of the 19th century.
Professor Liu identified a few significant milestones since 1900. First, he highlighted the Open-Door notes of 1899-1900. As the US and other countries began to be allied against China, the U.S. insisted that it would not permit China to be colonized. This created a rift with Japan which, he suggested, would eventually trigger the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Second, at the Paris Peace conference after World War I, President Wilson supported the ceding of Chinese territory to Japan. This was a blow to China and led two years later to the founding of the Chinese Communist party. Third, after World War II, the U.S. sent Secretary of State George Marshall to China to mediate the dispute between the Communist party and the Nationalist Party of Chiang Kai-Shek. This effort failed. Only a couple of years later, the Korean War broke out. This conflict is very differently remembered in the U.S. and in China, where it is celebrated as a great victory over the forces of the West.
In 1957, Chairman Mao began competing for global leadership. He went to Moscow, a visit that did not go well, alarming the Russians and beginning the Russia-China friction. He also interfered in U.S. domestic affairs in the 50s and 60s, without significant effect except to irritate the U.S. government. Then came President Nixon and American reevaluation of its relationship with China, resulting in the so-called policy of engagement culminating in Nixon’s visit to China in 1972. Six years later, President Carter normalized relations with China over the opposition of the Republicans. George H. W. Bush even went so far as to accuse Carter of being un-Christian in doing this, and Senator Goldwater sued him. This, in Professor Liu’s opinion, was the most important U.S.-China foreign policy decision. Relations were significantly warmer over the next decade, and then in 1989 came Tiananmen Square. The U.S. imposed sanctions on China but still tried to keep engaged to prevent relations returning to the earlier hostility and isolation. But as the U.S. kept hoping for change within China, it became increasingly frustrated that there was so little change. Finally the frustration led to a chilling of feelings towards China until, under the current Administration, all notions of cooperation have been destroyed. Once again China has become increasingly isolated, and issues such as the status of Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Tibet and conflict over islands in the South China Sea are not being addressed in U.S. policy.
Finally, Professor Liu noted that the U.S. should not rely on the idea of regime change. It will not happen anytime soon, if ever, so the U.S. must employ a different strategy. He identified areas where the U.S. and China might cooperate. As a first step, the U.S. must accept that it has no right to dictate to China how to govern its people and how to choose its leaders. Second, there must be discussion of trade issues, including the trade deficit, theft of intellectual property, and barriers to trade. Third, the U.S. and China must work together to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula. Fourth, they must work together to help with post-conflict reconstruction in the Middle East and Africa, counteracting terrorism and mediating other international disputes. To this list, the Carter Center would add vaccine cooperation and cooperation on climate change. All these issues add to a very full plate that awaits address by the next U.S. administration.
Thanks to Professor Liu for highlighting the very important and ever-changing relationship between the U.S. and China. Those who wish to know more about the subject may wish to consult three books that he recommended in the course of his presentation: The China Fantasy: Why Capitalism Will Not Bring Democracy (2007), by James Mann, The Pivot: The Future of American Statecraft in Asia (2016), by Kurt Campbell, and Revising U.S. Grand Strategy Toward China, by Ashley Tellis and Robert Blackwell (2015).
--Jan Pratt
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Nanette Wenger, MD, MACC, MACP, FAHA
Professor Emerita of Medicine
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The American Heart Association (AHA) presented its 2020 Eugene Braunwald Academic Mentorship Award to Nanette K. Wenger, MD, FAHA, during its Scientific Sessions 2020. The meeting was held virtually, Friday, November 13 – Tuesday, November 17, 2020.
The Eugene Braunwald Academic Mentorship Award is bestowed on annually to an individual whose academic career has included a long-term record of successful teaching and mentoring of the next generation of faculty researchers, educators and health care professionals. It is based upon a consistent record of molding the careers of multiple individuals during a continuous academic career. The award is named for the luminary cardiologist Eugene Braunwald, and previous recipients have included some of the most prominent researchers and educators in the country, each of whom has had a lasting impact on cardiovascular care and research through extensive mentoring of residents and fellows.
“Dr. Wenger is a leader in the field of women’s heart health and a strong proponent for women in cardiology and medicine. Her passion, dedication and advocacy have inspired countless trainees to carry this torch and continue to build on her truly impactful work,” said American Heart Association President Mitchell S.V. Elkind, MD, MS, FAAN, FAHA. “In our cardiology community, she has served as a mentor for countless young scientists, and we are grateful to her for leading the way for so many women in cardiology.”
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Perry Sprawls, PhD, FACR, FAAPM, FIOMP
Distinguished Emeritus Professor, Emory University
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International Day of Radiology Celebration Led by Emory Faculty
November 8, 2020 was the 125th anniversary of the discovery of x-radiation by the German physicist Wilhelm Roentgen that was the foundation of radiology and revolutionized the practice of medicine. Each year that date, the International Day of Radiology, and week is recognized and celebrated by the various radiology professionals; physicians, technologists, and physicists with programs, activities, and events highlighting both the history and current contributions of radiology to society.
This year the American Association of Physicists in Medicine selected Dr., Perry Sprawls, Emory University Distinguished Emeritus Professor, to lead the celebration by providing a virtual visit to Roentgen’s laboratory at the time of the discovery and continuing research. That visit can be viewed at:
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Oded Borowski
Professor Emeritus of Biblical Archaeology and Hebrew
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On November 11, 2020 Oded Borowski delivered a Zoom lecture titled “For Everything There Is a Season: Daily Life in Biblical Times” in the series Hot Topics in Biblical Archaeology sponsored by The Temple Emanu-El Streicker Center in New York.
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Robert H. Franch, MD. Professor Emeritus of Cardiology
Dr. Robert “Bob” Franch passed away peacefully at home in Atlanta, Georgia on November 10, 2020 at the age of 93, with his children at his side. He was one of the Emeritus College "Circle of 100" Founding Members.
A proud Colorado Buffalo, he attended college (class of 1948) and medical school (class of 1952) at the University of Colorado, Boulder, thanks to the generous support of the Boettcher Foundation. When Bob entered college at age 16, World War II was raging. At age 18, he took a leave of absence from school, enlisting and serving in the Navy during the last months of the war and the immediate aftermath.
After medical school, he completed his residency in internal medicine at the University of Cincinnati School of Medicine, Cincinnati General Hospital. Drawn to Emory University to study cardiology with Dr. Noble Fowler (Grady Hospital), he also met his future wife Haroldina (“Dina”) Lee. He completed his fellowship in cardiology in 1957 and married Dina in 1958.
His career in medicine spanned 41 years. An early leader in the field of congenital heart disease, he headed Georgia's first pediatric catheterization lab, trained several generations of cardiologists, cared for and comforted his patients and their families, and enjoyed the camaraderie of his incredibly talented colleagues. His family is proud of the two Lifetime Achievement awards he received: the 2006 Atlanta Business Chronicle Health-Care Heroes Lifetime Achievement Award for contributions to the field of pediatric cardiology and exceptional bedside manner; and the 2011 Georgia Chapter of the American College of Cardiology Lifetime Achievement Award.
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Walking the Campus with Dianne |
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In our last issue, I gave you a glimpse of what the main campus looks like during the pandemic. With all the tents and signs posted everywhere, the campus does look a bit different. Just remember, if you are planning to visit any place on campus, you must wear a mask!
For our next walk, let's look at a spot that is a bit off the beaten path. Some of you are probably quite familiar with it and know that it is designed to achieve environmental, social, and fiscal responsibility.
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Where Will You Find This on the Emory Campus? |
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Emory University Emeritus College
The Luce Center
825 Houston Mill Road NE #206
Atlanta, GA 30329
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