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The Obama family with Georgia congressman John Lewis in a walk across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, on March 7, 2015.

Fall 2019

Fall 2019 cover of Columbia Magazine, featuring an illustration of Barack Obama by Richie Pope
Download this issue

Let’s Talk about Obama

A new oral history project at Columbia sets out to capture the legacy of Barack Obama ’83CC ⁠— and the spirit of the country he led.

Features

The Machine that Can Read Your Mind
Brain scan
Science & Technology

The Machine that Can Read Your Mind

At Columbia's Magnetic Resonance Research Center, scientists are unveiling the neural basis of human thoughts, memories, and emotions

What Everyone Needs to Know About the Threat of Mass Extinction
Illustration by Eric Nyquist of animals trying not to fall off cliffs of tiny island
Science & Technology

What Everyone Needs to Know About the Threat of Mass Extinction

A million plant and animal species are at risk of disappearing, many within decades

High Art, High Ideals: Rachel Chavkin Takes on Broadway
Rachel Chavkin
Arts & Humanities

High Art, High Ideals: Rachel Chavkin Takes on Broadway

The Tony Award-winning director of Hadestown may be theater’s most forward-thinking artist

College Walk

The Columbia Startup Lab Throws a Birthday Party
Animation of 5-year anniversary celebration at Columbia Startup Lab, art by Jianan Liu
Alumni

The Columbia Startup Lab Throws a Birthday Party

Entrepreneurs help celebrate five years of innovation

Kicking off Columbia’s Year of Water
Waterlicht exhibition
On Campus

Kicking off Columbia’s Year of Water

An interactive installation lets you “experience” rising sea levels

The Short List: Fall 2019
Hannah Lash photographed by Kyle Dorosz
On Campus

The Short List: Fall 2019

An opera by Hannah Lash comes to Miller Theatre, and other events

A 500-year-old Artisanal Manuscript Yields Its Secrets
Students at Columbia's Center for Science and Society mix pigments at the Sato Sakura Gallery
Arts & Humanities

A 500-year-old Artisanal Manuscript Yields Its Secrets

“Try burnt oysters,” and other words of wisdom

A Playing-Card Collector Shows His Hand
Karata Playing Cards: Colour Print Ltd, circa 1970-1985, Kenya.
Arts & Humanities

A Playing-Card Collector Shows His Hand

An exhibition at Columbia presents highlights from the 6,400 decks of Albert Field ’38CC

The Core Curriculum Turns One Hundred
Statue of Plato against blue background
On Campus

The Core Curriculum Turns One Hundred

Columbia president Lee C. Bollinger on a century of well-rounded intellect

How Scholars Rescued the Author of Moby-Dick from the Waters of Oblivion
Illustration of Herman Melville by Audrey Hawkins
Arts & Humanities

How Scholars Rescued the Author of Moby-Dick from the Waters of Oblivion

Honoring Melville at 200

Touring Brooklyn’s Urban Farms
Sign for East New York Farms community garden
Health & Medicine

Touring Brooklyn’s Urban Farms

Students get a fresh look at the issues of food justice and sustainability

Explorations

Dangerous Radiation Lingers for Decades
Columbia scientists Emlyn Hughes and Gemma Sahwell collecting soil samples on the Marshall Islands to test for radiation
Science & Technology

Dangerous Radiation Lingers for Decades

Certain areas of the Marshall Islands should remain off-limits, scientists say

The Mysterious Case of the Alien Rock
Tropical island in the Indian Ocean
Science & Technology

The Mysterious Case of the Alien Rock

Why does an island in the Indian Ocean contain a mountain of crystalline rock that could never have formed there naturally?

Making Precision Medicine Work for Every Body
Man at doctor's office
Health & Medicine

Making Precision Medicine Work for Every Body

A new study aims to identify ways of diversifying genetic databases

Do Cell Phones Reduce Violent Crime?
Hands holding iPhone
Science & Technology

Do Cell Phones Reduce Violent Crime?

A new study suggests that they may have helped slash US murder rates in the 1990s

Now Scientists Can Alert Immune System to Cancer Cells in Hiding
An artist’s rendering of white blood cells attacking a cancer cell
Health & Medicine

Now Scientists Can Alert Immune System to Cancer Cells in Hiding

The technique could lay the groundwork for a new type of immunotherapy

Study Hall: Fall 2019
Study_Hall_HERO
Science & Technology

Study Hall: Fall 2019

Seven new research briefs from Columbia

Cash is Critical in Fight Against Poverty
Children jumping rope on city sidewalk
Science & Technology

Cash is Critical in Fight Against Poverty

Fund people over programs, study suggests.

Columbia Scientists Discover Largest Fresh-Water Aquifer Ever Found
The Marcus G. Langseth research vessel at sea
Science & Technology

Columbia Scientists Discover Largest Fresh-Water Aquifer Ever Found

(It’s bigger than Lake Erie and Lake Ontario combined)

How ISIS Really Recruits its Members
ISIS members marching with flag
Science & Technology

How ISIS Really Recruits its Members

A study looks at what makes the group’s online propaganda successful

Astrophysicists Strike Gold
Rendering of neutron star
Science & Technology

Astrophysicists Strike Gold

0.3 percent of Earth's rare elements come from a single stellar explosion 4.6 billion years ago

Network

9 Vintage Movie Posters Worth a Second Look
3.19_NETW_posters_HERO_3
Arts & Humanities

9 Vintage Movie Posters Worth a Second Look

Film buff Dwight Cleveland ’82CC gives a tour of his rare collection

A Scholar’s Guide to the Camino Way
Olivia Pittet walking the Camino trail
Alumni

A Scholar’s Guide to the Camino Way

Olivia Pittet ’79GSAS on the joys of navigating the medieval pilgrimage route

A Data Scientist Competes in one of the World’s Toughest Endurance Tests
Eco-Challenge contestant Joshua Forester
Alumni

A Data Scientist Competes in one of the World’s Toughest Endurance Tests

Meet Eco-Challenge contestant Joshua Forester ’04CC

Josh Simpson, Terrence McNally, and Other Alumni in the News
Josh Simpson playing baseball at Columbia
Alumni

Josh Simpson, Terrence McNally, and Other Alumni in the News

Columbians making headlines. 

Capturing the Life of Toni Morrison
Photo of Toni Morrison by Timothy Greenfield-Sanders
Arts & Humanities

Capturing the Life of Toni Morrison

A new film by Timothy Greenfield-Sanders '74CC honors the legacy of the celebrated writer

He Loves Italian Soccer So Much He Bought a Team
ACF Fiorentina Italian soccer team at Columbia University
Alumni

He Loves Italian Soccer So Much He Bought a Team

Rocco B. Commisso ’71SEAS, ’75BUS is the new owner of the Florence-based team ACF Fiorentina

Books

Review: "The Widow Washington"
Cover of The Widow Washington by Martha Saxton
Books

Review: "The Widow Washington"

By Martha Saxton ’89GSAS

Review: "Range"
Cover of Range by David Epstein
Books

Review: "Range"

By David Epstein ’02CC, ’04GSAS, ’04JRN

Review: "The Sweetest Fruits"
Cover of The Sweetest Fruits by Monique Truong
Books

Review: "The Sweetest Fruits"

By Monique Truong ’95LAW

Fall 2019 Reading List
Stack of books: The Last Book Party by Karen Dukess, Well by Sandro Galea, A Prayer for Travelers by Ruchika Tomar, Wild Game by Adrienne Brodeur, Overthrow by Caleb Crain, The Story of the Dinosaurs in 25 Discoveries by Donald R. Prothero, The Dreamt Land by Mark Arax
Books

Fall 2019 Reading List

New and noteworthy releases from alumni and faculty

The Long and Strange History of Celebrity
3.19_Booktalk_MARCUS_ROSE1
Books

The Long and Strange History of Celebrity

English and comparative-literature professor Sharon Marcus shines a light on self-promotion and stardom through the ages

Bulletin

Big Grant for Big Data
Jeannette M. Wing
On Campus

Big Grant for Big Data

The National Science Foundation has awarded $4 million to the Columbia-led Northeast Big Data Innovation Hub

Costis Maglaras Takes the Reins at Business School
Costis Maglaras, dean of Columbia Business School
On Campus

Costis Maglaras Takes the Reins at Business School

The new dean is an authority on operations research, data analytics, and quantitative finance

Knight Institute Wins Lawsuit Challenging President’s Twitter Tactics
Columbia Alma Mater statue
On Campus

Knight Institute Wins Lawsuit Challenging President’s Twitter Tactics

Blocking critics on the social-media platform violates the First Amendment, court rules

Aces Down the Line
Former Columbia tennis head coach Bid Goswami
On Campus

Aces Down the Line

Columbia tennis head coach Bid Goswami retired this summer as the winningest coach in program history

Taiwanese President Speaks on Campus
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen speaking at Columbia University in July, 2019
On Campus

Taiwanese President Speaks on Campus

Tsai Ing-wen visited Columbia this summer, meeting with students and faculty and participating in a wide-ranging conversation about global politics

Top Faculty Honored
BULL_Faculty-2
On Campus

Top Faculty Honored

Eight faculty members in the Arts and Sciences began this semester as new recipients of Distinguished Columbia Faculty Awards

Law-School Donors Endow Fifty New Scholarships
Members of Columbia Law School’s class of 2019 at commencement
On Campus

Law-School Donors Endow Fifty New Scholarships

Each of the $100,000 gifts will go to student aid

Biotech Incubator Receives $1M Boost from Engineering Alum
BULL_Biomed-team
On Campus

Biotech Incubator Receives $1M Boost from Engineering Alum

The gift will provide financial backing and support services to promising ventures in the organization's pipeline

Melissa Begg Named Dean of School of Social Work
Melissa Begg, dean of Columbia's School of Social Work
On Campus

Melissa Begg Named Dean of School of Social Work

The population-health scientist and academic administrator started her new role on September 1

Rare Finds

Mad Magazine Folded, But Its History Lives on at Columbia
Print of Mad Magazine #1
On Campus

Mad Magazine Folded, But Its History Lives on at Columbia

Looking back at Harvey Kurtzman’s design for the 1952 cover of the first issue

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