Hamilton in the News

“You can ask just one simple question to find out whether someone likes Donald Trump more than Hillary Clinton: Is Barack Obama a Muslim? If the answer is yes, 89 percent of the time that person will have a higher opinion of Trump than Clinton.” So began an analysis of results from the 2016 American National Election Study (ANES) pilot survey by James S. Sherman Professor of Government Philip Klinkner published by Vox on June 2.

With a well-known commencement speaker who holds controversial views, Hamilton may have anticipated a bit more national media attention to the event than in past years. What was not expected was additional focus on the dean of faculty.

A May 17 American Public Media Marketplace broadcast titled “Why did inflation increase in April?” featured an interview with Ann Owen, the Henry Platt Bristol Professor of Economics. Responding to a U.S. Department of Labor report that the consumer price index or CPI rose in April, Owen pointed out that energy prices are increasing, although they still were not as high as they were a year ago.    

Several national and regional media outlets included interviews with Hamilton experts in the last few weeks on topics ranging from the decision to keep Alexander Hamilton on the $10 bill to new strategies for engaging younger donors. Inside Higher Ed, The Washington Post, NBC News, Roll Call, and WAMC were among the outlets that featured Hamilton.

“Like a hike into rough terrain, the book is full of surprises … And it is packed with fascinating details,”  proclaimed a Wall Street Journal reviewer in describing Professor of History Maurice Isserman’s newest book. According to publisher W.W. Norton & Company, Continental Divide – A History of American Mountaineering “tells the history of American mountaineering through four centuries of landmark climbs and first ascents.” 

In the weeks following spring break, there is usually an abundance of speakers on campus. This year was no exception with almost 100 speakers presenting in the last 30 days on myriad topics. Three well-known scientists were among them: Neil deGrasse Tyson, Robert Ballard and Michael Mann.

A paper titled “Unearthing the ‘Green’ Personality: Core Traits Predict Environmentally Friendly Behavior,” co-authored by Visiting Assistant Professor of Psychology Cameron Brick, was referenced in an article that appeared in the Santa Barbara Independent (Santa Barbara, Calif.) on April 10.

During an April 5  NPR Hidden Brain Grit,”  University of Pennsylvania psychologist Angela Duckworth spoke about research conducted by Daniel Chambliss, the Eugene M. Tobin Distinguished Professor of Sociology. Duckworth described Chambliss as “one of my favorite thinkers on this topic,” and referenced his extensive research on Olympic swimmers.

“An account both educational and perhaps surprisingly, thrilling,” is how Booklist described Continental Divide: A History of American Mountaineering in a recent review. Maurice Isserman, Publius Virgilius Rogers Professor of American History, will be discussing his new book, published by W.W. Norton this month, in the Glen House Great Room tonight, April 7, at 8 p.m.

American Public Media’s Marketplace broadcast on March 10 began with an examination of the differences between our country’s Federal Reserve policies as compared with other nations. The first commentator in the segment, titled A Transatlantic Central Banking Policy Disparity, was Ann Owen, the Henry Platt Bristol Professor of Economics, who observed, “Europe has not recovered as well as the U.S. has from the crisis. European monetary policy needs to be more aggressive.”