BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Edgar Lehr, assistant professor of biology at Illinois Wesleyan University, is part of a duo that recently discovered three new species of frogs living in the forests of southern Peru.

Lehr and his partner, Swiss-Peruvian ecologist Alessandro Catenazzi from the University of California at Berkeley, have worked together to uncover more than 10 new species of amphibians. “We should know what else is living on our planet,” said Lehr, who noted scientists estimate there are between 5 million to 100 million organisms on Earth, with only about 2 million classified. “So we are far from a true understanding of the complete planet.”

The three recently discovered species are excellent examples of the diversity of amphibians, according to Lehr. All three new species – Bryophryne hanssaueri, Bryophryne gymnotis, and Bryophryne zonalis – actually do not have a tadpole phase. “Every school child learns that frog eggs turn into tadpoles, but across the globe, there are frogs who carry eggs on their back, or in pouches on their back. There was even a frog in Australia that swallowed eggs to let them develop inside her stomach,” he pauses and smiles. “Can you tell I love frogs?” With their discovery, there are now six known Bryophryne species.

More

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – For decades, scholars have reported how the Soviet culture emphasized that happiness could be found in the utopia of a collective society. Yet how was collective happiness pursued? A groundbreaking new book, co-edited by Illinois Wesleyan University’s Isaac Funk Professor of Russian Studies Marina Balina, explores the concept of happiness as defined by Soviet culture in Petrified Utopia: Happiness Soviet Style (Anthem Press, 2009).

“These essays redefine the preconceived notion of Soviet happiness as the products of official ideology imposed from above and expressed predominantly through collective experience,” said Balina.

Featuring articles by leading specialists in the study of Soviet culture from the United Kingdom (UK), the United States, Germany and Italy, the book is part of the publisher’s series on Russian, East European and European Studies. The goal of this collection of essays is to introduce the Western reader to the most representative ideas of happiness, and the common practices of its pursuit that shaped Soviet everyday life and cultural discourse from the early post-revolutionary years to the later period of Stalinist and post-Stalinist culture.

The book’s essays explore the idea of happiness as portrayed in paintings, architecture, films and posters, which contributed to our understanding of the “Soviet Self.” Along with her editing duties that she shared with Evgeny Dobrenko of the University of Sheffield, UK, Balina has co-authored an introduction and contributed an essay on the concepts of happiness as portrayed in children’s literature titled, ”It’s Grand to be an Orphan!’ Crafting Happy Citizens in Soviet Children’s Literature of the 1920s.”

More

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – The Bayeux Tapestry captured a pivotal moment in European history. The 230-foot-long embroidered cloth, which depicts events leading up to the Battle of Hastings in 1066 and scenes from the battle iself, is renowned among scholars of medieval history, art and literature. Illinois Wesleyan University Professor of English Dan Terkla is helping to uncover the mysteries of the Tapestry with the new book The Bayeux Tapestry: New Interpretations (Boydell & Brewer, 2009).

“History is written by the victors, and the Tapestry is a great piece of public relations,” said Terkla, who co-edited the collection of essays for the book, and contributed his own chapter. In the case of the Bayeux Tapestry, the victor was William of Normandy, who defeated King Harold I of England at the Battle of Hastings. Thought to be embroidered around 1068, the Tapestry tells the story of how William the Conqueror ascended to the throne of England as the rightful king, and portrays Harold as a usurper.

Edited by Terkla, Martin Foys and Karen Eileen Overbey, the book is a collection from a combination of well-established scholars and voices new to Tapestry studies, said Terkla. “We truly hope to live up to the title of the book, New Interpretations.”

More

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Illinois Wesleyan University’s Earl H. and Marian A. Beling Professor in the Natural Sciences Ram Mohan will be honored in Washington, D.C. at the American Chemical Society (ACS) national conference this month for an article he authored with his collaborator and sabbatical host, Dr. Janet Scott.

The article, “Reactivity of ionic liquids” has been named one of the “Top 50 Most Cited Articles” from 2006-2009. The article was originally published in 2007 in the international journal Tetrahedron. This is the third time Mohan has received the honor, previously recognized for a 2004 article on bismuth reactivity co-authored with several IWU students. “Ionic liquids represent a fundamentally new and different class of solvents,” Mohan said, “This is an exciting time to be working with ionic liquids.”

Mohan’s celebrated research is geared toward discovering environmentally friendly synthetic methods for chemists to use at pharmaceutical and other companies, including work with bismuth compounds. A member of the IWU faculty since 1996, his work is known worldwide. He is the recipient of several research grants, including the largest individual grant at the University. During his time at Illinois Wesleyan, Mohan has co-authored 49 articles with University undergraduates as co-authors.

More