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Anne Rubin, an associate professor of history, has been presenting a series of talks throughout the fall while on sabbatical. She has been discussing her new book, Through the Heart of Dixie: Sherman’s March and American Memory (UNC Press 2014). In the book, Rubin analyzes stories and myths about Sherman’s March, one of the most symbolically potent events of the Civil War, as a lens for examining how Americans’ ways of thinking about the Civil War have changed over time.

Rubin is scheduled to appear on WYPR’s Humanities Connection on November 27 to discuss her interactive online storytelling project, “Mapping Memory: Digitizing Sherman’s March to the Sea.” She will also be presenting a Humanities Forum event at UMBC on December 2 discussing her work. For more information, click here. Earlier in the fall, Rubin was quoted in a Washington Post article about Sherman’s March and provided insight on Sherman’s strategy. To read the full article, click here.

A complete list of talks presented by Rubin can be found below:

September
18-21: Flair Symposium in Austin, TX
23: Atlanta History Center

October
12: Southern Festival of the Book
20: Talk at George Mason University
22: Talk at Villanova University

November
1: Reading at Politics and Prose in Washington, D.C.
7: Talk in Augusta, GA
12: Talk in Milledgeville, GA
13-16: Southern Historical Association in Atlanta

December
2: Talk at UMBC
9: Filson Historical Society, Louisville

January
21: Talk at UT Chattanooga

February
16-17: Conference on Sherman in Columbia, SC

The Council on Hemispheric Affairs, based in Washington, D.C., recently published an op-ed by Felipe Filomeno, an Assistant Professor of Political Science, about recent events in Brazilian politics.

In the column, Filomeno argues that the tight victory of President Dilma Rousseff in her bid for another term and the election of a more conservative parliament signal the exhaustion of Lulismo as a mode of governing and strategy of national development. He writes that the Workers’ Party (PT) now faces the challenge of forging new connections with the civil society to promote progressive changes in a context of economic difficulties and political polarization.

“Now, either the PT will be able to turn the difficult elections of 2014 into a ‘labor pain’ from which a new social pact for development could emerge, or it will see a revitalized President Rousseff immobilized in the face of stronger conservative forces waiting for a new ‘interrupted construction,’” Filomeno writes.

To read the full column titled “Brazilian Elections: Labor Pain?” click here.

In an article published October 31 on Vox.com, Psychology Professor Robert Provine was quoted extensively about his research on hiccups and the evolution of behavior. He discussed how there’s little scientific knowledge about hiccups and how they are difficult to study.

“We still don’t know what hiccups do, and our cure for them hasn’t improved since Plato,” said Provine. “You can’t just go into the lab and ask someone to hiccup for you.”

Provine also discussed holding breath as a possible cure for intractable hiccups. “You’re blocking the motor pattern as well as leading to a buildup of carbon dioxide,” he said.

In an article published on Today.com discussing a recent episode of “The Tonight Show” in which Bradley Cooper and Jimmy Fallon couldn’t control their laughter throughout a ten-minute interview, Provine was quoted from a 2010 interview he participated in with NBC News.

“All laughter is unconscious,” he said. “You do not choose to laugh the way you choose to speak.” The article also cites Provine by stating: “And laughter and humor aren’t as closely tied as people might think. Babies laugh without understanding a joke or that knowing that pratfalls are hilarious, according to Provine.”

To read full versions of both articles, click below:
The mysterious science of hiccups: Why we get them and how to stop them (Vox)
This is why Jimmy Fallon and Bradley Cooper couldn’t stop giggling (Today.com)