In Review

In Brief

Political Scientist Studies Voting Systems

Richard Niemi, professor of political science, is part of a team that’s evaluating voting technology and ballot design with the aim of developing reliable guidelines to ensure accurate voting and vote counts. With the support of a $900,000 grant from the National Science Foundation, Niemi and researchers from the University of Maryland and the University of Michigan have begun assessing voting systems. “The events surrounding the 2000 presidential election made it clear to everyone that voting procedures and equipment affect voters’ beliefs about their fairness and even their willingness to accept the results of an election,” says Niemi, who specializes in voting behavior and civic education.

What Was John Adams Really Like?

Readers can get a more complete picture of America’s second president, John Adams, and his wife, Abigail, thanks to a new edition of the correspondence between the famous historical figures. Edited by Frank Shuffelton, professor of English, the new edition of The Letters of John and Abigail Adams restores much of the personal details that the couple’s grandson omitted when the collection was first published in 1876. The letters provide political commentary, news of historical events, accounts of household life, and even family gossip. “The letters give a sense of the personalities of John and Abigail and other figures from that time period; they get readers inside the history of the Revolution,” says Shuffelton.

Legendary Flutist Mariano Fêted

Retired Eastman School of Music faculty member Joseph Mariano, whose playing and teaching inspired generations of flutists and wind players throughout the world, returned to Rochester last fall to be honored for his nearly 40 years of teaching at the school. Colleagues and former and current Eastman students participated in a celebration that included a master class, the unveiling of Mariano’s portrait on the school’s Cominsky Promenade, a panel discussion, and a concert by the Philharmonia Chamber Orchestra.

Warner School Marks 10 Years with New Name

The Margaret Warner Graduate School of Education and Human Development is marking the 10th year of its naming. Renamed to honor a multimillion dollar gift in memory of trustee Margaret Warner Scandling ’44, the gift enabled the school to advance its efforts in teaching and research, and to promote education reform, University and school administrators noted at a reception in October.

Meliora Press: A New Imprint

The University of Rochester Press has created a new imprint called Meliora Press to publish books of particular interest to the University and local communities. The first two titles in the new imprint are Resonance: Electrical Engineering at the University of Rochester, by Edward Kinnen, professor emeritus of electrical engineering, and Paul Yu Remembered, by Jules Cohen ’53, ’57M (MD), professor of cardiology at the School of Medicine and Dentistry, and Stephanie Brown Clark, an assistant professor in the Division of Medical Humanities at the Medical Center.