Media Coverage

Research on the end-Permian extinction by Robert Gastaldo, the Whipple-Coddington Professor of Geology, was the subject of a Daily Californian article on June 11. The article highlighted Gastaldo's recently published work that identifies a new timeline for the end-Permian extinction. “We now know after 18 years of research … that whatever happened to the plants, and maybe to the animals, … did not happen at the same time of the greatest mass extinction in Earth’s history that occurred in the oceans,” Gastaldo said. “Whatever happened on land happened 300,000 years, or maybe a little more, before the catastrophe in the ocean,” Gastaldo to the paper. 

Cacophonic Choir, a work co-created by Hannen (Hannah) Wolfe, assistant professor of computer science, was featured in an ACM SIGGRAPH blog post. The project "amplifies the voices of sexual survivors' stories ... and uses machine learning through carefully spaced agents to demonstrate the effect of the mass media on survivors’ stories," the blog reports. Click here to read the Q&A with the creators and learn about their "inspiration, algorithms, and audio."

An op-ed in the June 13 Portland Press Herald co-written by Catherine Besteman, the Francis F. Bartlett and Ruth K. Bartlett Professor of Anthropology, points out concrete steps Maine can take to correct inequalities for people of color living in the state. Places to start, suggested by the authors, include:

• • Maine should take more steps to protect the sovereignty of tribes in the state.
  • Maine should not incarcerate children.
  • Budgets for police departments should fall and funds should be redirected to support the construction of affordable housing, free health clinics, addiction recovery support, substantive job skills training and adult education.
  • Because the CARES Act discriminates against many categories of legal immigrants, Maine should step up to ensure immigrant Mainers receive equal supports and protections.

Professor of Government Dan Shea was tapped to comment on the Maine Public piece titled "Political Scientists Say Maine Candidates Could Face Consequences For Skipping Debates." As the debate season heats up, candidates need to carefully weigh their options when deciding whether or not to participate. “Generally speaking, political scientists will tell you, especially at this point, no one is really paying attention, but this year and in most other things it is different. They are paying attention to what candidates are doing and they have some big expectations,” Shea told Maine Public. 

“Understanding the landscape that our students are going to be moving into, we knew that we needed to turbo-charge our efforts to ensure post-graduate success and really launch this initiative to make that happen,” Andy McGadney, vice president and dean of student advancement, said of Colby's Pay it Northward initiative to the Concord Monitor for their story "In uncertain economy, colleges help students find jobs."  The article also asked if New Hampshire schools should initiate a similar program. “Every institution has a powerful network within their own right. They have alumni that have graduated and gone on and done great things. How can they create a real meaningful call to action to support their graduating seniors right now?” McGadney said.

A June 8 Washington Post article cited research by Jim Fleming, the Charles A. Dana Professor of Science, Technology, and Society. The article, titled "New bill would prohibit the president from nuking a hurricane," mentioned Fleming's book “Fixing the Sky: The checkered history of weather and climate control," and says that the idea of "nuking the weather into submission is nothing new," to which Fleming added, "people have been discussing the possibility for almost as long as nuclear weapons have existed."

The 17-year career of Colby Museum of Art's Sharon Corwin, the Carolyn Muzzy Director and Chief Curator, was heralded in the Portland Press Herald article "Outgoing director elevated Colby museum into a new league." As Corwin prepares to leave the museum at the end of June to become president and CEO of the Terra Foundation for American Art in Chicago, her legacy at the Colby Museum includes doubling the size of the collection and the museum's expansion. Finding a replacement for Corwin is made easier because of her leadership, which has led to the museum becoming a top-tier institution. "Sharon has great standing in her field. We love her at Colby, but she is beloved in the art world, and that doesn’t hurt when you are looking for a new director,” President David Greene told the Press Herald. “Sometimes I dread a job search. This one, as much I dreaded losing Sharon, I was looking forward to this search because I knew we would be attracting incredible, interesting people.”

Assistant Professor of Government Laura Seay was tapped to comment on a story regarding misinformation in a statement by U.S. Ambassador to Kenya Kyle McCarter regarding the death of George Floyd. In a video address, McCarter said "while no action can bring George Floyd back to his family, the officers involved have been arrested," which is not true.  "This feeds fuel to the fire," Seay, a scholar of Africa's Great Lakes Region, told Washington Post reporter John Hudson. "Providing misinformation to Kenyans, whether intentional or not, is harmful to the United States' interests in East Africa and further undermines the efforts of diplomats there to build support for the United States."

Author and ABC News Anchorman Dan Harris '93 appeared on NewsCenter Maine's show 207 to talk about his career path, which began in Maine after graduating from Colby, and his 2014 book 10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works. "In these unsettled times, when so many people are more stressed-out than ever, could meditation make you ten percent happier? I don’t know. What I do know is that I found Dan’s journey fascinating. Watch both parts of our conversation and listen to what he has to say. This much is clear: the guy knows how to tell a story," said the show's host, Rob Caldwell.

National media continues to show significant interest in Colby’s Pay It Northward campaign and the fall semester. CNBC’s "Power Lunch" featured President Greene, who said that “always expanding and finding new ways so that our students get a great step up into the world is absolutely essential to us.” Additionally, he said the College is “putting in a really robust testing system that will make it one of the safest campuses in the country.”