This month’s newsletter is available for download in PDF format.
Events Calendar
- Jun 12 • Baltimore Book Club Discussion
- Jun 13 • Washington DC Book Club Discussion
Stanford in the News
- Stanford has announced the winners of the 2021 university awards honoring faculty, students and staff for exceptional service, distinctive contributions to undergraduate education and excellence in teaching. The nine winners will be publicly recognized on June 13 at the Commencement Ceremony for the Senior Class of 2021. The in-person ceremony, which will be livestreamed, will take place at 9:30 a.m. (PDT) in Stanford Stadium. Stanford remains committed to holding a future in-person 2020 graduation ceremony, which will publicly recognize the 2020 winners of the Cuthbertson, Dinkelspiel and Gores awards announced in March 2021. The ceremony was delayed due to the pandemic.
WDCSA Book Club Corner
Washington DC Book Club Discussion
Sunday, June 13, 5 pm
Zoom
The June book is Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson.
Wilkerson portrays an unseen phenomenon (caste) as she explores how America has been shaped by a rigid hierarchy of human rankings. Beyond race, class, or other factors, there is a powerful caste system that influences people’s lives and behavior and the nation’s fate. Linking the caste systems of America, India, and Nazi Germany, Wilkerson explores the many pillars that underlie caste systems across civilizations, including divine will, bloodlines, stigma, and more.
Questions/RSVP: Don Bieniewicz, MS ’75, at donbien@erols.com.
Baltimore Book Club Discussion
Monday, July 12, 7:30 pm
Google Meet: Everyone will be emailed a link to join the meeting a few minutes before.
Exercised by Daniel Lieberman is a fact filled, myth busting book focused on the bane of many folks’ existence: exercise. Lieberman targets three myths. (1) It’s normal to exercise. While humans did evolve to move, exercise is different because it’s done for health and not survival. (2) Running is bad for the knees. While knee injuries are indeed the most common form of damage to runners, much of that damage could be avoided through proper running technique and foot gear. The corollary myth that running causes osteoarthritis has been soundly refuted by numerous large scientific studies. (3) It’s normal to exercise less as we age. Actually, we evolved to be active as we age. And this exercise invokes repair mechanisms which counter the effects of aging. For example, the Harvard Alumni Study found that older alumni who exercised had a 50% lower mortality rate than their sedentary classmates. Overall, this book provides an insightful and scientific perspective on some of the myths and truths inherent in the ever popular field of exercise.
The September 13th selection is Normal People: A Novel by Sally Rooney.
Questions/RSVP: Helene Myers, Ph.D., P’14, at cedarhouse@comcast.net