Intersections: Cross-Cultural Theater in Germany and the U.S.

Thursday, March 20, 2014 
Montgomery Theater, Annenberg Center for Performing Arts
3680 Walnut Street


5:00p Scenes from Özdamar's plays
Staged by Ibrahim Miari, University of Pennsylvania

Reception to follow in Montgomery Theater Lobby

Friday, March 21, 2014 
Benjamin Franklin Room, Houston Hall, 2nd Floor
3417 Spruce Street


9 - 9:30a Welcome and coffee

9:30 - 9:45a Opening remarks

9:45 - 10:55a
Exile in Translation: E.S. Özdamar Shifts the Greenwich  Meridian of Literature Azade Seyhan, Bryn Mawr College
Postmigrant Performance at the Ballhays Naunynstraße Katrin Sieg, Georgetown University

10:55a - 12:05p
Socio-Artistic Collaboration between Germany and Turkey Pieter Verstraete, Sabanci University, Istanbul
After Diaspora, "Beyond Belonging": Assessing the Future of Citizenship from a Noncitizen Stage Damani Partridge, University of Michigan

12:05 - 1:20p Lunch break

1:30 - 3:05p
Rethinking Desert: Ethnicity, Space, and Latino Theater Jon D. Rossini, University of California at Davis
Jewish Theater in the U.S. Today Michael C. Steinfels, Gratz College

From Samarqand to San Francisco, Nasrudin Hoja's Theatrical Evolution Torange Yeghiazarian, Golden Thread Productions, San Francisco

3:05 - 3:35p Coffee break

3:35 - 4:45p
Enacted Migration in Emine Sevgi Özdamar's "The Bridge of the Golden Horn" Ortrud Gutjahr, University of Hamburg
Theater Works: The Interplay of Genres in Özdamar's Oeuvre Yasemin Dayioglu-Yücel, University of Pennsylvania

5 - 6p Reading by Emine Sevgi Özdamar with Q&A, in German

Saturday, March 22, 2014 
Annenberg Center for Performing Arts
3680 Walnut Street

10 - 10:30a
Post Migrant Theater and Cultural Politics in Germany Nora Haack, Theater Ballhaus Naunynstraße, Berlin Montgomery Theater

10:30a - 12p
Roundtable Discussion: Cross-Cultural theater in Germany and the U.S.
 Nora Haack, Theater Ballhaus Naunynstraße, Berlin
 Robert Smythe, Temple University
 Ibrahim Miari, University of Pennsylvania
 Ortrud Gutjahr, University of Hamburg
 Moderator: Marcia Ferguson, University of Pennsylvania
 Montgomery Theater

12 - 1p Lunch reception in Studio Lobby

1 - 2p Conversation with Emine Sevgi Özdamar on Intersections of  Theater and Literature Room 511, Annenberg Center for Performing Arts

2 - 3p Coffee break

2:30 - 4p Theater Workshop Caroline Weist, University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia à la Pataphysique

March 20-31, 2014

Pataphysics Then and Now: A Conference

Friday, March 21, 2014 | Slought Foundation | 4:00-8:00pm

Saturday, March 22, 2014 | The Kislak Center | 10:30-7:30pm

Keynote Speaker: Andrew Hugill

Christian Bök |Craig Dworkin | Jill Fell | Line McMurray |Katie L. Price

Jean-Michel Rabaté |Linda Klieger Stillman |Michael Taylor

Exhibition: Slought Foundation

Selected paintings, prints, and drawings by Philadelphia- based artist

James E. Brewton (1930-1967)

Exhibition: The Kislak Center

Selected rare books, prints, and ephemera from Linda Klieger Stillman’s

private collection

Film

Zazie dans Le Metro

Tuesday, March 18| International House | 7:00pm

Ubu Roi

Thursday, March 27, 2014 | International House | 7:00pm

Pataphysical Short Films

Saturday, March 29 | International House | 2:00pm

Pataphysical Arts Night

Thursday, March 20, 2014 |Kelly Writers House |6:00-8:00pm

Craig Dworkin | DJ Spooky/Paul D. Miller | Judith Goldman | Andrew Hugill

Michelle Taransky | Christopher Vandegrift

https://www.english.upenn.edu/Conferences/pataphysics/

Philadelphia à la Pataphysique is generously supported by the Provost Interdisciplinary Arts Fund, the Kelly Writers House Seth Ginns International Fund, the Kelly Writers House Scott Bok Visiting Writers Fund, the Cinema Studies Department, the English Department, the Penn Humanities Forum and Poetry & Poetics, SASgov

SEAS Penn iTalks Wednesday, February 26th, 7pm

RSVP to the Facebook event here.

If you have any questions/feedback about the event, please email penn.italks.seas@gmail.com 

Talk Summaries

1) Ben Freedman (BE)

Elucidating the mechanisms of tendon fatigue damage with injury and healing through novel mechanical and image-based measures

Achilles and patellar tendon injuries affect both athletes and the general population, and their incidence is rising. In particular, these tendons are subject to high dynamic loading during activity, and fatigue induced damage is likely a contributing factor to ultimate tendon failure. Unfortunately, little is known about how injured tendons behave under fatigue loading during healing, and image based measures to evaluate tendon damage are currently lacking. Previous studies have used various imaging modalities to study the accumulation and progression of fatigue-induced damage. However, such studies have not been designed to characterize the load and region dependence of structural properties. This information remains critical to best evaluate tendon damage induction and the ability of the tendon to maintain mechanical properties with repeated loading. This research reinforces the concept that fatigue loading is an essential metric to assess tendon healing. Collagen organization assessed during tendon healing and fatigue loading was correlated to mechanical properties. Such structural measures will be investigated in future studies to further define when it may be safe to resume activity following tendon injury.

2) Carlos Aspetti (MSE)

Silicon Photonics: Turn off the dark.

As Moore’s law reaches its limits, computing with optical devices (that operate at the speed of light) offers a viable alternative. Moreover, the perfect solution will build upon the semiconductor industry’s decades of silicon processing research. Unfortunately, silicon, the backbone of modern electronics, is a traditionally “dark” material. In other words, when charge carriers are excited in silicon, their energy is converted much more readily to heat than to light, which is why we have commercial silicon electronics, but not silicon photonics. Using antennas designed to operate at optical frequency, we are able to extract orders-of-magnitude greater light emission in a broad range of colors and on ultra-fast time scales. Originally, developed as means of tuning light emission in optical materials (cadmium-sulfide), we recently extended this concept to the most ubiquitous electronic material, silicon, representing a significant leap towards the “holy grail” that is all-optical, all-silicon computing and photonics.

3) Denise Wong (MEAM)

Micro Bio Robots: Actuation and Sensing at the Microscale

Microscale robots offer an unprecedented opportunity to perform tasks at resolutions approaching 1 μm.  At this scale, it is difficult to provide on board actuation, sensing, signal processing and feedback.  Micro Bio Robots (MBRs) look to address these challenges by utilizing bacteria.  MBRs are synthetic microstructures with a monolayer of flagellated bacteria adhered to the surface.  I will discuss two systems, firstly, a bacteria actuated system where the flagella of the bacteria propel the microstructure causing it to rotate and translate in a fluidic environment on a planar surface in the absence of external forces.  Secondly, I will discuss a system where synthetically engineered E.coli are used to create cell-based programmable mobile sensors, with signal processors and memory units.  These sensors are integrated with a micro magnetic robot to allow manipulation of the sensors to provide spatial detection.  This cross-disciplinary research is at the intersections of mechanical engineering, robotics and synthetic biology and has important implications for integrated micro-bio-robotic systems for applications in biological research, nanomedicine and beyond!

Demography Student Research Seminars: Week 2

We will continue our series Monday, March 3rd from 5-6 PM with the following two speakers:

Arun Hendi, Demography: "Trends in U.S. Life Expectancy Gradients: The Role of Changing Educational Composition."

Theresa Fedor, Demography: “Changing Attitudes and Beliefs towards HIV/AIDS: The Effect of Differential Exposure to HIV Prevention Programs.”

Dinner and drinks will be provided!! Please RSVP using this form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1aTpJWWihFCDj5jxq8X0LxS1cKVA3-Lo9e9ZwTogxH9M/viewform

SEAS Penn iTalks - February 26th (Session1)

7:00-8:00 pm: SEAS Penn iTalks presentation at Wu and Chen Hall
8:00-9:30 pm: Happy hour (open to all graduate engineering students) at Levine Lobby

The three finalists presenting during this session are:

1) Ben Freedman (BE)

Elucidating the mechanisms of tendon fatigue damage with injury and healing through novel mechanical and image-based measures

Achilles and patellar tendon injuries affect both athletes and the general population, and their incidence is rising. In particular, these tendons are subject to high dynamic loading during activity, and fatigue induced damage is likely a contributing factor to ultimate tendon failure. Unfortunately, little is known about how injured tendons behave under fatigue loading during healing, and image based measures to evaluate tendon damage are currently lacking. Previous studies have used various imaging modalities to study the accumulation and progression of fatigue-induced damage. However, such studies have not been designed to characterize the load and region dependence of structural properties. This information remains critical to best evaluate tendon damage induction and the ability of the tendon to maintain mechanical properties with repeated loading. This research reinforces the concept that fatigue loading is an essential metric to assess tendon healing. Collagen organization assessed during tendon healing and fatigue loading was correlated to mechanical properties. Such structural measures will be investigated in future studies to further define when it may be safe to resume activity following tendon injury. 

2) Carlos Aspetti (MSE)

Silicon Photonics: Turn off the dark.

As Moore’s law reaches its limits, computing with optical devices (that operate at the speed of light) offers a viable alternative. Moreover, the perfect solution will build upon the semiconductor industry’s decades of silicon processing research. Unfortunately, silicon, the backbone of modern electronics, is a traditionally “dark” material. In other words, when charge carriers are excited in silicon, their energy is converted much more readily to heat than to light, which is why we have commercial silicon electronics, but not silicon photonics. Using antennas designed to operate at optical frequency, we are able to extract orders-of-magnitude greater light emission in a broad range of colors and on ultra-fast time scales. Originally, developed as means of tuning light emission in optical materials (cadmium-sulfide), we recently extended this concept to the most ubiquitous electronic material, silicon, representing a significant leap towards the “holy grail” that is all-optical, all-silicon computing and photonics.

3) Denise Wong (MEAM)

Micro Bio Robots: Actuation and Sensing at the Microscale

Microscale robots offer an unprecedented opportunity to perform tasks at resolutions approaching 1 μm.  At this scale, it is difficult to provide on board actuation, sensing, signal processing and feedback.  Micro Bio Robots (MBRs) look to address these challenges by utilizing bacteria.  MBRs are synthetic microstructures with a monolayer of flagellated bacteria adhered to the surface.  I will discuss two systems, firstly, a bacteria actuated system where the flagella of the bacteria propel the microstructure causing it to rotate and translate in a fluidic environment on a planar surface in the absence of external forces.  Secondly, I will discuss a system where synthetically engineered E.coli are used to create cell-based programmable mobile sensors, with signal processors and memory units.  These sensors are integrated with a micro magnetic robot to allow manipulation of the sensors to provide spatial detection.  This cross-disciplinary research is at the intersections of mechanical engineering, robotics and synthetic biology and has important implications for integrated micro-bio-robotic systems for applications in biological research, nanomedicine and beyond!  

Come cheer on your peers and vote for your favorite talk (the audience favorite prize is worth $100 and will be determined at the end of Session 2). After the talks, stay for the happy hour and network with the judging panel (engineering professors), as well as the presenters and fellow engineering graduate students. The happy hour portion of this event is for students who are 21+. 

Session 2 will be held on Wednesday, April 2nd.

If you have any questions/feedback about the event, please email penn.italks.seas@gmail.com

Social Theory Reading Group

The Social Theory Reading Group meets every other week for in-depth discussions of recent works in social theory. We aim to create a space for discussions that are at once informal and rigorous, interdisciplinary and focused, eclectic and intensive, analytic and engaged. For details, including time and place of meetings, as well as relevant readings, please email: sid.rothstein [at] gmail.com

Warring Words: Rethinking Polemic in the Study of Jews and Judaism

Interdisciplinary Graduate Student Conference at Penn
Cafe 58 (Room 124), 3401 Spruce Street
Thursday, March 20th, 2014 - 9 am to 5 pm

There exists a strong scholarly consensus that polemic has played a central role in Jewish history. Whether we consider polemics involving Samaritans, Christians, Qaraites, Muslims, Haskalah thinkers, Zionists, “the nations,” or contemporary group identity formation, polemical forms of argumentation and representation have been widespread in thinking about Jews and Judaism. However, this scholarly consensus often obfuscates rather than clarifies, preventing the category of polemic from receiving careful scrutiny. The label “polemic” can render certain aspects of a text unproblematic or irrelevant, because scholars frequently view polemic as a dishonest form of argumentation that bears little or no relationship to a writer’s “real” views. To move this situation forward, scholars must begin to ask the following questions. How can scholars identify polemic and delimit its boundaries? Does the label polemic imply that a given author actually held different views? How is that view identified? Are there limits to polemic, either based on reasonableness or believability? Do consumers of polemic share the scholarly skepticism of polemic or recognize the rhetorical strategies at play? What role does relationship with a real or imagined “Other” play in constructing identity?

All are welcome to attend this conference, featuring Professor Elisheva Carlebach, Columbia University, as the keynote speaker and students of different periods and disciplines in the study of Judaism and Jewish history who will bring diverse data to bear on these theoretical questions. This conference is generously sponsored by Penn’s Jewish Studies Program, Sasgov, History, Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, English, Classics, and Ancient History. This one-day event will be held on Thursday, March 20, 2014, 9 am to 5 pm in Café 58 (Room 124) at 3401 Spruce Street. Breakfast and lunch will be served.

For more information: http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/jwst/events/2014/warring-words-rethinking-polemic-study-jews-and-judaism-jsp-interdisciplinary-graduate-s

Penn Interdisciplinary Talks Kick Off Happy Hour

Come mingle with fellow graduate students from all Penn schools. Meet future friends, collaborators, or research partners over food and drinks.

Penn Interdisciplinary Talks (Penn iTalks) is an initiative at Penn to promote student research that crosses disciplinary boundaries. The School of Arts and Sciences, School of Engineering, School of Nursing, and the School of Social Policy and Practice are organizing events to encourage the presentation and dissemination of student research at Penn. Come find out how you can get funding and opportunities to share your research outside your own department and school.

Tuesday February 11, 2014
4 - 6 pm
Terrace Room, Claudia Cohen Hall

Co-hosted/sponsored by SASgov, GSEG, GAPSA, GSC, Nursing, and SP2