Harvard gazette 05.27.10

1. HARVARD gazette
27 MAY-
01 SEPTEMBER 2010
VOL. CV NO. 17
NEWS.HARVARD.EDU/GAZETTE
The future beckons
Grounded in academics, committed to public
service, Harvard’s graduates step out into the
wider world. Page 8

2. Online Highlights ROLLING BACK THE FOREST CANOPY
Forests are declining in all six New
England states for the first time in
150 years, threatened by urban
NEW NEXT FALL sprawl in the south and by recre-
A daily e-mail version of the Gazette, a ational development and forest owner-
snapshot of what's happening at Har- ship fragmentation in the north,
vard, with stories about campus life according to a new report released by
and research, along with announce- researchers at the Harvard Forest.
ments and calendar items. Watch hvd.gs/47406
news.harvard.edu/gazette/ this sum-
mer for details.
FOLLOWING COMMENCEMENT
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ART, PRINTMAKING, AND SCIENCE GOLDIE DIRECTOR OF THE HARVARD
Harvard students in a History of Sci- INSTITUTE FOR GLOBAL HEALTH
ence class worked to create an ex- Declaring the University’s efforts to
hibit that illustrates the importance of improve the state of global health
print technologies and printmaking, knowledge, education, and capacity
not only to the dissemination of scien- building to be one of her “very highest
tific knowledge in early modern Eu- priorities,” President Drew Faust an-
rope, but also to its creation. nounced the appointment of Sue J.
hvd.gs/47479 Goldie as director of the Harvard Insti-
tute for Global Health.
hvd.gs/47035
Police Log Online www.hupd.harvard.edu/public_log.php
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HARVARD gazette
Photos (top) Kris Snibbe, (center) Rose Lincoln, (right) courtesy of Sue Goldie, (lower left) Goltzius’ “Child with a Skull Blowing Bubbles” (detail), 1594, by Jess Dugan © President and Fellows of Harvard College

3. HARVARD UNIVERSITY gazette | 27 MAY-01 SEPTEMBER 2010
4
COMMENCEMENT PROFILES CLASS OF 1950 REMINISCES, Page 29
359TH COMMENCEMENT In a series of profiles, Gazette writers
showcase some of Harvard’s stellar SERVICE TO SOCIETY
COMMENCE WONDERMENT graduates. Pages 13-23 The Harvard Business School recognizes
A breakdown on Harvard’s graduation eight students. Page 31
rituals, and how they came to be. Page 4 2009-10 IN REVIEW
BENEFITING SOCIETY, SCHOLARSHIP
A glance at the highlights. Pages 24-25
HONORARY DEGREES AWARDED, Page 5 GSAS recognizes alums with its Centen-
nial Medal. Page 32
ALUMNI RALLY BEHIND PUBLIC SERVICE
COVER STORY/FAUST EMPHASIZES
Outgoing HAA President Teresita Alvarez-
PUBLIC SERVICE RADCLIFFE AWARDS FAY PRIZE
Bjelland says the group’s interest in
Concluding a year of expanded volunteer Diana C. Wise wins Fay Prize. Daniel Bear
public service is expanding. Page 26
efforts at Harvard, president announces ’10 and Molly Siegel ’10 are recognized
new fellowships that will allow students with honorable mentions. Page 33
HAA NAMES HARVARD MEDALISTS
to do well by doing good. Page 8
Four recognized for their extraordinary
STEINEM TO RECEIVE RADCLIFFE MEDAL
service. Page 26
PHI BETA KAPPA LITERARY EXERCISES Celebrated feminist activist to deliver
Page 10 address at Radcliffe Day. Page 33
‘I HAD THE BEST TIME IN THE WORLD’
James Houghton, senior fellow of the
BACCALAUREATE SERVICE, Page 11 RADCLIFFE NAMES 48 NEW FELLOWS
Harvard Corporation, reflects on his long
They will work within and across
ROTC COMMISSIONING CEREMONY
University association. Page 27
disciplines. Page 34
Page 12
ALUMNI SUPPORT FINANCIAL AID, Page 28
DEGREE CHART, Page 34
35 37 41
SCIENCE & HEALTH ARTS & CULTURE CAMPUS & COMMUNITY
IN PRAISE OF UNWANTED TERMITES AT THE A.R.T., AN EXPLOSION ‘REMARKABLE TEACHERS’
The star of Africa’s savanna ecosystems OF CREATIVITY Historian Maya Jasanoff and chemist
may be the lowly insect. Its regularly The American Repertory Theater con- Tobias Ritter win Roslyn Abramson Award.
spaced mounds prove a key to maintain- cludes its inventive first year under Diane Page 41
ing ecological function in the area. Paulus with the premiere of the musical
Page 35 “Johnny Baseball.” Page 37 STUDENT VOICE/ALEXA ING STERN ’12
A Harvard undergraduate travels to China
FACULTY PROFILE/SUSAN MANGO WHAT THEY’RE READING to visit an orphanage she aided from afar,
Professor of molecular and cellular biol- A survey of top Harvard faculty shows and sees the impact of her public
ogy and MacArthur award winner brings what books they’re reading and enjoying service. Page 41
her unorthodox approach to research. on summer’s edge. Page 38
Page 36 ON THE JOB (AND OFF)/JASON LUKE
40 The on-the-ground organizer for Harvard’s
Commencement activities. Page 42
NEWSMAKERS, PAGES 44-45
HOT JOBS, PAGE 45 NATIONAL & WORLD AFFAIRS HARVARD’S HARD WORK IN ASIAN NATIONS
MEMORIAL MINUTES, PAGE 46
Six sources of grants support student
CREATING WORLDWIDE CHANGE scholarship, research, travel. Page 43
OBITUARIES, PAGE 46 A Kennedy School degree program cele-
AROUND THE SCHOOLS, PAGE 46
brates a decade of graduates who are
having a major impact on international de-
CALENDAR, PAGE 47 velopment. Page 40
HARVARD RITUALS/CLASS DAY, PAGE 48
Photo: (top row from left) (file) Justin Ide, Kris Snibbe, Stephanie Mitchell; (second row) Kris Snibbe, Stephanie Mitchell, Jon Chase | Harvard Staff Photographers

4. 4 359TH COMMENCEMENT HARVARD UNIVERSITY gazette | 27 MAY-01 SEPTEMBER 2010
Commence wonderment
A breakdown on Harvard’s graduation rituals,
and how they came to be.
By Sarah Sweeney | Harvard Staff Writer
Ah, Harvard lore. It can be befuddling if from various departments to make
you don’t know the history behind sure it spoke to their experiences at
these age-old Commencement conven- Harvard.” In the fall, Marks is headed
tions. to Ann Arbor, Mich., to enter a com-
munity of Catholic teaching nuns
SALVETE OMNES!
called the Dominican Sisters of Mary, The Middlesex sheriff pounds his
That’s “Hello, everyone!” in Latin, in staff three times to signal the start
Mother of the Eucharist, where after
case you didn’t know. of Commencement. Orations are
three years of classes in the convent
also a tradition, with this year’s
And during Morning Exercises, when on theological and ecclesiastical top-
speakers being: (clockwise from
degrees are conferred and Tercente- ics, she’ll attain a teaching certificate top) Chiamaka Nwakeze, Mary
nary Theatre is overtaken by thousands at a local university and teach in Anne Marks, and Jimmy Tingle.
of guests, that greeting will be shouted, Catholic schools. “I’ve always thought
ushering in two graduating seniors and about being a nun but came to Har- cessful career as a comedian,
one graduate student to offer orations vard planning to go to graduate school began thinking about going
in one of Harvard’s oldest traditions. and perhaps also do some other things back to school in 2007 when his
before entering,” she recalled. “I de- Davis Square (Somerville,
But just who are these speech-givers, Mass.) enterprise, Jimmy Tin- wondered about it.
cided in January of last year to enter
and how did they get here? gle’s Off Broadway Theater, closed. “I
right after college, but a master’s or But this President’s Chair was not al-
In April, Harvard’s Commencement Of- Ph.D. is still a possibility. One of the wanted to do something completely dif-
ferent and evaluate my life and career,” ways tucked away for special occasions.
fice holds an open speech-writing com- exciting things about being a nun is Old reports suggest it resided in one of
petition for graduating seniors. Long that one never knows what the future he recalled. Before studying public ad-
ministration at HKS, Tingle was often Harvard’s libraries, and gave young
ago, these orations were given in Greek, holds!” men the right to kiss any lady he was
Latin, or Hebrew, and were mainly the- featured in film and television and was
CHIAMAKA NWAKEZE, even a commentator for “60 Minutes.” showing around, and who happened to
sis defenses. But times have changed, UNDERGRADUATE ORATION sit in it.
and students now address current is- Social and political themes are common
After writing six speeches, neurobiol-
sues and events, or speak of lessons in Tingle’s routines, and he plans to Few will argue the strange regal quality
ogy concentrator Chiamaka Nwakeze
learned from their years at Harvard — continue to write, perform, pursue of the chair, but its usage was intended
decided on “the one.” “Applying for the
all in just five minutes (and only one more work on radio and TV, and “ex- for something far less romantic than
orations competition challenged me to
speech is in Latin). plore how I can better use entertain- royalty and making out. Its true destiny
distill four years at Harvard into a four-
ment to effect social change.” Yet, after was as a domestic piece of furniture.
Final auditions involve a live reading in minute speech,” Nwakeze said, “and
all his accomplishments, Tingle still That’s right, just your average, every-
front of an audience and take place in speaking at graduation will be an addi-
can’t believe his luck in landing one of day, humble chair. Who would’ve
late April. A panel of professors, deans, tional challenge.” But she’s ready.
the biggest gigs of all: Harvard Com- thought?
and other officials measures each can- Nwakeze cites her Nigerian parents’
mencement. He joked: “Looking over
didate; after all, these are the only “immigrant work ethic,” which “signifi- TICKET TO RIDE
the list of distinguished Commence-
speeches delivered during the Morning cantly shaped who I am,” she said. Over Harvard Commencement begins with
ment speakers, Tingle does have a nice
Exercises ceremony, and they have to her four years, she has been the vice the cry, “Sheriff, pray give us order!”
ring to it. Only in America! Only at Har-
be good. president of programming for the Har-
vard!” That would be a call to the Middlesex
vard Premedical Society, co-editor in
Fun fact: Only graduating seniors are chief of the student-run journal Har- UNCOMMON THRONE and Suffolk county sheriffs, who will be
given translations of the Latin speech. vard Brain, business chair of the Na- There’s nothing truer than Harvard wearing handsome top hats, morning
So unless you’re versed in the ancient tional Symposium for the loving a good ritual. But a three-legged coats, and striped pants with swords
language, you’re out of luck. Here are Advancement of Women in Science chair? Stranger things have happened and scabbards at the belt. And they’ll
the scheduled orators: (where she helped to raise more than here. be riding white horses.
MARY ANNE MARKS, LATIN ORATION $10,000 for its conference), and a pub- Pounding his staff three times, the
Purchased by Harvard President Ed-
Queens, N.Y., native Mary Anne Marks lic speaking and writing tutor at the Middlesex sheriff will signal the start of
ward Holyoke, who served from 1737 to
is a classics and English joint concen- Harvard Allston Education Portal. Commencement, decreeing, “This
1769, the famed seat now rests in the
trator who fell in love with the Latin Next, this New Rochelle, N.Y., native is meeting will be in order.”
Fogg Art Museum, where it’s removed
language by studying Cicero’s Catili- off to Yale to work as a research lab as-
at Commencement for Harvard’s presi- As lore has it, the sheriffs were origi-
narian Orations. “The links between sistant for biochemist Arthur Horwich,
dent to repose in. But the chair’s nally invited during the 17th century to
Latin and Romance languages are fas- and plans to enroll in a M.D./Ph.D. pro-
unique look matches its precarious ori- control unruly or drunk students and
cinating, and, at the same time, Latin gram thereafter.
gin and history. alumni by horseback. Today, smartly
has the ability to say things in ways JIMMY TINGLE, GRADUATE ORATION
Furniture historians wager that this dressed sheriffs continue fêting Com-
that are not available to Romance lan- “I never in a million years thought I
unusual Jacobean chair — a “three- mencement atop those noble alabaster
guages or to English,” said Marks. “I would be speaking at Harvard Com-
square turned chair” — was made ei- steeds — with a few bumps in their
mused about ideas for the speech for mencement,” said Jimmy Tingle, enter-
ther in England or Wales between 1550 road.
weeks before setting pen to paper, tainer, Cambridge native, and now
and, once I’d picked a topic, I con- and 1600. Not even Holyoke knew the In 1970, Middlesex County Sheriff John
Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) gradu-
sulted with friends and acquaintances facts and was stumped when visitors J. Buckley announced he would not at-
ate. Tingle, who already boasts a suc-
Photos by (top left) Jon Chase, (center and right) Kris Snibbe, (below) Stephanie Mitchell | Harvard Staff Photographers

5. 359TH COMMENCEMENT 5
stop the German media. In 1964, news of West
German Chancellor Ludwig Erhard’s hon- Honorary degrees
orary degree spread through German news
outlets, eventually reaching Harvard when a Harvard will confer 10 honorary degrees today
Crimson reporter wrote about it. during the Morning Exercises.
All members of the University community are
David H. Souter
invited to propose candidates for honorary de-
Doctor of Laws
grees. Nominations are sent to a committee
composed of the Corporation, the Board of David H. Souter was an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
Overseers, and senior faculty members. for 19 years before retiring in June 2009. Souter, who graduated
from Harvard College in 1961 and Harvard Law School in 1966, will
Did you know that Benjamin Franklin received
be the principal speaker at the Afternoon Exercises at this year’s
the first honorary degree in 1753? Or that more
Commencement.
than 2,000 honorary degrees were conferred
before one was granted to a woman? That Harvard President Drew Faust hailed Souter’s
tend Commencement because he refused to went to Helen Keller, Radcliffe Class of 1904. “deep sense of independence and fairness” and
wear the traditional required dress. In the “clear concern for the effects of the court’s deci-
Honorands must receive their degrees in per-
1930s, something similar occurred when two sions on the lives of real people” in making the
son.
Massachusetts governors chided Harvard for Commencement speaker announcement. She
its dress code. Later, Gov. Paul Dever outraged IT WAS A VERY GOOD YEAR said his “dedication, humility, and commitment to
officials by arriving in a tuxedo and straw hat. Though Harvard College was established in learning” should be an inspiration to anyone con-
1636, the first graduating class took six years templating a career in public service.
Another year, Gov. James Michael Curley ap- to complete its studies.
peared in silk stockings, knee britches, a pow- Souter was also a Rhodes Scholar, earning an M.A. from Magdalen
dered wig, and a three-cornered hat with Held in 1642, the foundational Commence- College in Oxford in 1963.
flowing plume. When officials objected to his ment graduated just nine men in a Harvard
Yard ceremony. It was considered a festival for Nominated by President George H.W. Bush, Souter came to the
overwrought attire, Curley procured his copy court after spending many years at posts in the New Hampshire
of the Statutes of the Massachusetts Bay six nearby towns, and comprised a weekend of
feasting, merrymaking, and, of course, drink- legal system. Born in Massachusetts, he moved to New Hampshire
Colony — which had a dress code of its own — as a boy. After graduating from Harvard Law School, he began his
and proclaimed that he was the only person in ing. Many officials and residents came from
afar to take in the pageantry. legal career in private practice. In 1968, he was named assistant at-
attendance who was properly dressed. torney general of New Hampshire. In 1971, he became deputy attor-
SPEAK EASY Yet in the 17th century, the month of celebra- ney general, and, in 1976, attorney general. He became a state
Highlights of Commencement include those tion was not in May or June, but in September, Superior Court associate justice two years later and was appointed
sometimes famous, sometimes groundbreak- a time when most graduates began careers as to the state Supreme Court as an associate justice in 1983. He be-
ing, but ultimately unforgettable, speechmak- clergymen or teachers. came a judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in
ers. There are two speakers: one for Class Day, 1990, shortly before his nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Though dubbed “the oldest continuous
one for Afternoon Exercises. springtime festival in North America,” there Thomas R. Cech
The Senior Class Committee has invited Class have been breaks in Commencement’s line. Doctor of Science
Day speakers since 1968, when Coretta Scott In fact, it has been canceled nine times, for Thomas R. Cech, director of the Colorado Institute for Molecular
King delivered an inaugural address, taking reasons varying from smallpox to the Revolu- Biotechnology at the University of Colorado, has made important
the place of her husband, the Rev. Martin tionary War. Heavy rains forced Commence- contributions to understanding RNA, findings
Luther King Jr., who had been assassinated ment indoors to Sanders Theatre in 1968, that won him the Nobel Prize in chemistry in
two months earlier. She told the crowd: “Your marking the first indoor exercises since 1922. 1989.
generation must speak out with righteous in- However, today’s Commencement reliably
dignation against the forces which are seeking takes place al fresco at Tercentenary Theatre Cech was awarded the Nobel for revelations that
to destroy us.” — rain or shine. RNA, ribonucleic acid, has functions beyond its
role as a carrier of genetic information. In a single-
Past speakers have been as varied as last year’s BELLS DU JOUR celled organism, Tetrahymena thermophila, Cech
Matt Lauer, co-anchor of NBC’s “Today,” to When Morning Exercises are over, bells across discovered that RNA can also function as an en-
former President Bill Clinton, comedian Cambridge will ring for 15 minutes. No, it’s not zyme, a function that had previously been thought
Conan O’Brien ’85, singer and activist Bono, a fire drill or citywide warning — just another to be the exclusive domain of proteins. These RNA
baseball legend Hank Aaron, charitable leader well-oiled practice. enzymes are called ribozymes.
Mother Teresa, television anchorman Walter
Cronkite, and comedian Rodney Dangerfield, At 11:30 a.m., for the 21st consecutive year, Cech grew up in Iowa and earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry
to today’s speaker, journalist and chief inter- bells will ring from the Memorial Church from Grinnell College in 1970. He received a doctorate in chemistry
national correspondent for CNN Christiane tower, Lowell House, the Harvard Business from the University of California, Berkeley, and did postdoctoral re-
Amanpour. School, Christ Church Cambridge, the Har- search at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He joined the
vard Divinity School in Andover Hall, the University of Colorado faculty in 1978 and became a Howard
The speaker for Afternoon Exercises is deter- Church of the New Jerusalem, First Church Hughes Medical Institute investigator in 1988 and distinguished
mined by the University president and the Congregational, First Parish Unitarian Uni- professor of chemistry and biochemistry in 1990.
president of the Harvard Alumni Association, versalist, St. Paul Roman Catholic Church, St.
who undergo cloak-and-dagger negotiations Peter’s Roman Catholic Church, University In 2000, Cech became the president of the Howard Hughes Medical
for months and keep their selection veiled until Lutheran Church, Holy Trinity Armenian Institute and led that organization until 2009, when he returned to
February, when an official announcement is Apostolic Church, North Prospect United the University of Colorado as director of the Colorado Institute for
made. This year’s speaker is former Supreme Church of Christ, and St. Anthony’s Church. Molecular Biotechnology.
Court Justice David Souter ’61, LL.B. ’66.
For exiting graduates, the bells offer a rever- In addition to the Nobel Prize, Cech has won numerous awards and
Honorands are also kept confidential until ent, jubilant sound, a festive marker for a
Commencement Day — though that didn’t treasured turning point. (see Honorands next page)

6. 6 359TH COMMENCEMENT HARVARD UNIVERSITY gazette | 27 MAY-01 SEPTEMBER 2010
Honorands a Centennial Medal from the Harvard education administration and educa- her Ph.D. in biology from Harvard Uni-
(continued from previous page) Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. tional statistics in 1975 from the Uni- versity in 1976. In 1999 she was named
honors, including the Albert Lasker She has won several teaching awards, versity of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. the Albert D. Lasker Professor of Med-
Basic Medical Research Award in 1988, holds nine honorary degrees, and in ical Sciences at the University of
He is a member of several boards, in-
the National Medal of Science in 1995, 2007 received the Lifetime Achieve- Chicago.
cluding the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
and the Heineken Prize of the Royal ment Award of the American Society
and the Carnegie Foundation for the Her awards include the Dickson Prize
Netherlands Academy of Sciences in for Bioethics and Humanities.
Advancement of Teaching. He is the co- in Medicine, the Centennial Medal of
1988. In 1987, Cech was elected to the
Freeman A. Hrabowski III author of “Beating the Odds: Raising the Harvard University Graduate
U.S. National Academy of Sciences and
Doctor of Laws Academically Successful African Amer- School of Arts and Sciences, the Otto-
was awarded a lifetime professorship by
ican Males.” In 2009, Time magazine Warburg Prize, and the Genetics Soci-
the American Cancer Society. Freeman A. Hrabowski III is commit-
named Hrabowski one of America’s 10 ety of America Medal. She is an
ted to rigorous academic standards and
Renée C. Fox best college presidents. associate member of the Broad Insti-
challenging students to excel. The pres-
Doctor of Laws tute, a member of the Whitehead Insti-
ident of the University of Maryland, Susan Lindquist
tute for Biomedical Research, and an
Renée C. Fox’s studies in the sociology Baltimore County (UMBC), who chose Doctor of Science
elected member of the American Acad-
of medicine, medical ethics, medical re- to fund a championship chess team at
Understanding how malformed pro- emy of Arts and Sciences and the Na-
search, and medical education have led the school instead of a football pro-
teins affect the human body, and how tional Academy of Sciences. She is the
her to Belgium, the gram, has built a career devoted to edu-
they are involved in evolution, is the co-founder of the Cambridge-based
Democratic Republic cation and to helping minorities
realm of biologist Susan Lindquist, FoldRx Pharmaceuticals Inc.
of the Congo, China, succeed in science,
Howard Hughes Medical Institute in-
and the United technology, engineer- Thomas Nagel
vestigator and professor of biology at
States, and have re- ing, and math. Doctor of Laws
the Massachusetts Institute of Technol-
sulted in nine books
In 1988 he co- ogy. American philosopher of the mind
and numerous arti-
founded the Meyer- Thomas Nagel is known for “What Is It
cles. Lindquist, an authority on the complex
hoff Scholarship Like to Be a Bat?” This rumination on
molecular phenome-
Fox earned a doctor- Program at UMBC the idea of consciousness — and the
non called protein
ate in sociology from Harvard in 1954. with the goal of in- limits of science for explaining it — was
folding, explores how
She received a bachelor’s degree summa creasing the diversity published in the Oc-
misfolded proteins
cum laude from Smith College. She of future leaders in science, technology, tober 1974 issue of
play a role in diseases
joined the faculty at the University of engineering, and related fields. Origi- The Philosophical
such as cancer, cystic
Pennsylvania in 1969, where she is An- nally geared toward African-American Review.
fibrosis, Parkinson’s,
nenberg Professor Emerita of the Social males, the program has expanded to
and Huntington’s. The article articu-
Sciences. students of all races and both genders,
She uses yeast-based lates a central con-
and has been recognized by the Na-
Before joining the University of Penn- models of such pro- cern of Nagel, who
tional Science Foundation as a national
sylvania’s faculty, Fox was a member of tein-folded diseases to develop new ap- said that humans in-
model.
the Columbia University Bureau of Ap- proaches to therapy. stinctually want to
plied Social Research. She taught for 12 Called a “tireless academic cheer- make sense of the world, but adopting a
One area of Lindquist’s research exam-
years at Barnard College and then was a leader,” he was associate dean of gradu- unified, purely objective worldview can
ines the “chaperone” heat shock pro-
visiting lecturer for two years at Har- ate studies and associate professor of lead to error. In fact, relying on scien-
teins that assist in protein folding and
vard’s Department of Social Relations. statistics and research at Alabama A&M tific objectivity alone leaves out some
help to buffer genetic mutations. When
At Pennsylvania, she was a professor in University from 1976 to 1977. He was a essential component of understanding
such chaperone systems are over-
the Sociology Department with joint professor of mathematics at Coppin ourselves.
whelmed, misfolding and disease states
secondary appointments in the Depart- State College in Baltimore for 10 years,
can result. The former director of the Since 1980, Nagel has taught at New
ments of Psychiatry and Medicine, and and served as dean of arts and sciences
Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Re- York University, where he is University
in the School of Nursing. She also held from 1977 to 1981. He was the school’s
search also has explored how such mis- Professor of Philosophy and Law. His
an interdisciplinary chair as the Annen- vice president for academic affairs from
folded proteins affect some other interests include political philos-
berg Professor of the Social Sciences. 1981 to 1987. He went to the UMBC as
evolutionary changes. ophy and ethics. He published his first
vice provost in 1987, and was appointed
Her best-known books are “Experi- philosophy paper in 1959 and his first
president in 1993. “One implication of our work is that the
ment Perilous: Physicians and Patients book, “The Possibility of Altruism,” in
protein-folding problem isn’t always a
Facing the Unknown,” “The Courage to The son of teachers, Hrabowski was 1970. Subsequent books include “Moral
problem,” notes Lindquist’s lab home
Fail: A Social View of Organ Trans- jailed for a week at age 12 after march- Questions” (1979), “What Does It All
page. “The very same types of misfold-
plants and Dialysis,” “Spare Parts: ing against school segregation in his Mean?” (1987), “The Myth of Owner-
ings that cause dreadful diseases in
Organ Replacement in American Soci- home city of Birmingham, Ala. “The ex- ship: Taxes and Justice” (2002, with
some circumstances can have beneficial
ety,” “The Sociology of Medicine: A Par- perience taught me that the more we Liam Murphy), and the recent “Secular
effects in others. The protein-folding
ticipant Observer’s View,” and “In the expect of children, the more they can Philosophy and Religious Tempera-
problem is as ancient as life itself; it
Belgian Chateau: The Spirit and Cul- do,” he said in a 2008 interview with ment” (2009), a book of essays.
makes sense that evolution would occa-
ture of a European Society in an Age of U.S. News & World Report, which
sionally, perhaps even often, use it to Nagel was born in 1937 in Belgrade, in
Change.” She is working on a book named him one of America’s best lead-
advantage.” present-day Serbia, and as a young child
about her life as a sociologist. ers.
moved to the United States. He earned
As a Radcliffe Fellow in 2007-08,
Fox is a member of the American Acad- An early academic standout, he skipped a B.A. in 1958 from Cornell University, a
Lindquist continued her investigations
emy of Arts and Sciences and of the In- two grades and graduated from high B.Phil. from Corpus Christi College, Ox-
into the connections between genomics
stitute of Medicine of the National school at age 15. Four years later he ford, in 1960, and a Ph.D. from Harvard,
and medicine.
Academy of Sciences. She is a fellow of graduated from Hampton Institute where he was a student of philosopher
the American Association for the Ad- with the highest honors in mathemat- Lindquist received her undergraduate John Rawls, in 1963.
vancement of Science. She has received ics. He received his master’s in mathe- degree in microbiology from the Uni-
He taught at the University of Califor-
a Radcliffe Graduate School Medal and matics in 1971 and his Ph.D. in higher versity of Illinois in 1971. She received
nia, Berkeley, (1963-66) and at Prince-

7. 359TH COMMENCEMENT 7
ton University (1966-80) and has lec- Hematology and Oncology at Chil- O’Neill’s advisory work reflects her aca- Meryl Streep
tured at Stanford, Oxford, Johns Hop- dren’s Hospital and the Dana-Farber demic interests. In the United King- Doctor of Arts
kins, Harvard, and Yale universities. Cancer Institute. In 1985, he was dom, she has been a member of the
Academy Award-winning actress
In 2008, Nagel received both the Rolf physician-in-chief at Children’s Hos- Animal Procedures Committee, the
Meryl Streep has won fans around the
Schock Prize in Logic and Philosophy pital, a position he held until 1995, Human Genetics Advisory Commis-
world and the acting industry’s highest
and the Balzan Prize in Moral Philoso- when he was named president of the sion, and the Nuffield Council on
awards for her versatility, her ability to
phy. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. He Bioethics, which she chairs.
master accents and personas, and her
served as Dana-Farber’s president
Nagel is a fellow of the American Acad- Richard Serra ease with both dramatic and comedic
until 2000.
emy of Sciences, a corresponding fellow Doctor of Arts roles.
of the British Academy, and a member He is the author of “Hematology of In-
Minimalist sculptor and experimental Considered one of the country’s great-
of the American Philosophical Society. fancy and Childhood,” which is the
video artist Richard Serra is famous for est living actresses, Streep has been
In 2008, he received an honorary D.Litt. leading text in the field.
his monumental works in steel — a fa- nominated 16 times for an Oscar, win-
from Oxford.
The Baroness Onora O’Neill vorite medium — and for his experi- ning two, and 25
David G. Nathan of Bengarve mental films, beginning with “Hand times for a Golden
Doctor of Science Doctor of Laws Catching Lead” in 1968. He is associ- Globe, winning
ated with the process art movement of seven. She is the
David G. Nathan, the Robert A. Strana- Scholar and politician Onora O’Neill,
the mid-1960s. It cel- most nominated
han Distinguished Professor of Pedi- Baroness O’Neill of Bengarve, studied
ebrates the serendip- performer for either
atrics at Harvard Medical School, philosophy, psychology, and physiology
ity of art (the drip award.
former physician-in-chief at Harvard- at Oxford University
painting of Jackson
affiliated Children’s Hospital, and for- before earning her Born in New Jersey
Pollock, for instance)
mer president of the philosophy doctorate in 1949, Streep’s ini-
as well as the process
Harvard-affiliated Dana-Farber Can- at Harvard in 1969. tial artistic interest was opera, but she
of making art (rather
cer Institute, has had a career of dis- eventually gravitated toward theater,
Her mentor and dis- than the art itself ).
covery, teaching, and graduating with a bachelor’s degree in
sertation adviser was
leadership that has His first sculptures drama from Vassar College in 1971. She
American philoso-
not only pushed back in the 1960s were earned an M.F.A. from the Yale School
pher John Rawls, the
the frontiers of made out of nontraditional materials of Drama in 1975.
one-time James
knowledge of blood- such as fiberglass, neon, and rubber.
Bryant Conant University Professor at Her early career involved the New York
based disorders but But he soon graduated to his lifelong
Harvard whose signature work, “A The- stage and included work with the New
also fostered a gener- fascination with metals.
ory of Justice” is still a primary text in York Shakespeare Festival, as well as
ation of leaders who
political philosophy. Born in 1939, Serra worked at steel on Broadway. In 1978 she won an
are guiding the field
mills to support himself while studying Emmy Award for her role in the televi-
into the future. A native of Northern Ireland, O’Neill
English literature at the University of sion miniseries “Holocaust.”
has written widely and influentially on
Nathan, who graduated from Harvard California, Berkeley, and then at the
political philosophy and ethics, as well Streep’s movie career blossomed with
College in 1951 and from Harvard University of California, Santa Barbara,
as on international justice, bioethics, her role in the 1978 film “The Deer
Medical School in 1955, is an authority where he received a bachelor’s degree.
media ethics, and the philosophy of Hunter.” She received her first Acad-
on blood disorders. His discoveries From 1961 to 1964, Serra studied paint-
Emmanuel Kant. Her work concerns is- emy Award nomination and has
have shed light on anemia and the he- ing at Yale University, earning both a
sues of trust, consent, and respect for worked steadily in films since.
moglobin disorder thalassemia. He B.F.A. and an M.F.A.
autonomy, in particular in the context
won the National Medal of Science in Two years later she won the Academy
of complex medical decision-making. From 1968 to 1970, he executed a series
1990 “for his contributions to the un- Award for best supporting actress for
of “splash pieces” in which molten lead
derstanding of the pathophysiology, A veteran instructor at universities in her role as a struggling mother in
was splashed against walls. Serra
diagnosis and treatment of tha- the United Kingdom and the United “Kramer vs. Kramer,” and won for best
moved to “prop pieces,” metal sculp-
lassemia; for his contributions to the States, she teaches philosophy at the actress in 1983 for her portrayal of a
tures held together solely by balance
understanding of disorders of red cell University of Cambridge, where she tormented Holocaust survivor in “So-
and the force of gravity. In 1970, Serra
permeability; for his contributions to was principal at Newnham College phie’s Choice.”
began experimenting with large-scale
the understanding of the regulation of from 1992 to 2006.
sculptures that played off urban land- Streep’s other films include “The
erythropoiesis; and for his contribu-
O’Neill is the author of seven books and scapes. Many were made of spirals and French Lieutenant’s Woman,” “Out of
tions to the training of a generation of
co-author of an eighth. Her works in- curving lines — counterpoints to the Africa,” “Silkwood,” “The River Wild,”
hematologists and oncologists.”
clude “Acting on Principle” (1975), “To- right angles that dominate city sky- “Adaptation,” “The Hours,” “The Devil
Nathan has won many awards and wards Justice and Virtue” (1996), lines. Wears Prada,” and “Julie and Julia.”
honors over his career, including the “Bounds of Justice” (2000), and “Au-
He is best known for his looming mini- Streep also is an environmental health
John Howland Medal of the American tonomy and Trust in Bioethics” (2001),
malist constructions made from rolls of activist. In 1989 she helped to found
Pediatric Society and the Kober Medal the last being her Gifford Lectures in
Cor-Ten steel. They were once dis- Mothers and Others, a consumer group
of the Association of American Physi- book form. (The prestigious Gifford
missed as artifacts from an arrogant art advocating sustainable agriculture and
cians. He is one of three physicians to Lectures, a tradition at Scottish univer-
world. Serra’s 120-foot-long Tilted Arc, increased pesticide regulations.
win both. sities, are designed to explore the idea
installed in Manhattan’s Federal Plaza
of “natural theology,” that is, theology Among her many honors are a Com-
Nathan’s medical career began as an in 1981, was dismantled eight years
supported by science.) mandeur de l’Ordre des Arts et des Let-
intern and senior resident at what was later. But in 2007, The New York Times
then the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital. called Serra “a titan of sculpture, one of tres from the French government and a
O’Neill, a life peer, is a “crossbench”
He spent two years as a clinical associ- the last great modernists.” That year, Lifetime Achievement Award from
(nonparty) member of the British
ate at the National Cancer Institute. four massive sculptures with the same the American Film Institute.
House of Lords. She has served on com-
From 1959 to 1966, he was a hematolo- mittees concerning stem cell research, whimsical curves were the center-
gist at Brigham Hospital, and then be- genomic medicine, and nanotechnol- pieces of a Serra retrospective at New — Compiled by Corydon Ireland,
came chief of the Division of ogy and food. York’s Museum of Modern Art. Alvin Powell, and Colleen Walsh

8. 8 359TH COMMENCEMENT HARVARD UNIVERSITY gazette | 27 MAY-01 SEPTEMBER 2010
As part of alternative spring break, Har-
vard’s Phillips Brooks House volunteers
Marcel Moran ’11 (from left), George
Thampy ’10, Nworah Ayogu ’10, Rachael
Goldberg ’12, and Kennedy Mukuna ’12
help rebuild a church in Alabama.
Faust emphasizes public service
Concluding a year of expanded volunteer efforts at Harvard, president announces
new fellowships that will allow students to do well by doing good.
The academic year that draws to a close service throughout the academic year. Chinatown, and scores of people from
today saw renewed emphasis on public across the University volunteered at the
In addition, Faust said that the goals of an
service across Harvard. In her Commence- Greater Boston Food Bank.
anticipated University fundraising cam-
ment address, President Drew Faust will
paign would include doubling funds for un- The University’s tradition of service dates
underscore the University’s mission to
COVER STORY dergraduate summer service opportunities to the 17th century. In 1636, the “College at
serve the common good and will announce
and significantly increasing service oppor- Newtowne” was founded to provide the
enhanced support for students seeking
tunities for students in the graduate and Massachusetts Bay Colony with the minis-
service opportunities, including new Presi-
professional Schools. The University also ters needed in what was perceived as a
dential Public Service Fellowships.
plans to create a public service Web site that wilderness. Six of the nine members of Har-
“It is a fundamental purpose of the modern will serve as a single entry point for stu- vard’s first graduating class became minis-
research university to develop talent in dents seeking information about career and ters, at least part time. Three of the six also
service of a better world. This commitment volunteer opportunities. were physicians.
is at the heart of all we do and at the heart of
The array of public service activities involv- By the early 17th century, Harvard’s Puritan
what we celebrate today,” Faust said in pre-
ing faculty, students, staff, and alumni this origins had been supplanted by Unitarian
pared remarks that also highlight the con-
academic year was sweeping in its diversity: leanings that secularized the University but
tributions that students, faculty, and staff
Students took advantage of the new winter allowed it to retain its sense of service to the
make every day. “We as a University live
recess to fight malnutrition in Uganda and greater good. When author Charles Dickens
under the protection of the public trust,
promote literacy in El Salvador, and when visited the United States in 1842, he casti-
[and] it is our obligation to … serve that
they fanned out from New York City to the gated the young nation for its rapacious
trust — creating the people and the ideas
Deep South to perform community service capitalism, calling America “a vast counting
that can change the world.”
on annual alternative spring break trips, house” and Boston a place that worshipped
The highly selective presidential fellow- they were joined for the first time by a the “golden calf” of mercantilism. But Dick-
ships will enable 10 students from across group of alumni in the ongoing effort to re- ens thought better of Harvard, writing that
the University to spend a summer working build New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. by serving the common good it represented
with a public service organization of their “a whole Pantheon of better gods.”
Harvard Law School (HLS) announced new
choice or on a service project of their own
funding to support postgraduate work in HARVARD’S “BETTER GODS”
creation. These students also will have the
public service, the Graduate School of De- Those better gods are evident in full meas-
opportunity to participate in symposia and
sign (GSD) put the creative talents of its stu- ure now at Harvard, where every discipline
other learning experiences related to public
dents to work designing a library in Boston’s is informed by the idea of public service.
Photo by Kris Snibbe | Harvard Staff Photographer