Dean of the Faculty

Mark Saltviet, Davis Family Library  
The Palindromes of Sidonius Apollinaris
The only palindromes found in a book from Roman antiquity are those found in the letters of Sidonius Apollinaris. However, different palindromes appear in different ancient manuscripts. Mark Saltveit relates his new research into which of these were original, and who may have written them.

Robyn Barrow, History of Art & Architecture
Recycling the Apocalypse: Resurrection, Adaption, and Sacred Fragments on Medieval Iceland
On medieval Iceland, which visitors conceptualized as the very mouth of hell, drastic environmental change and resource scarcity was not a sign of apocalypse, but a daily lived experience. The island is subject to extreme weather and geothermal activity that renders any material production, particularly architecture, deeply unstable.

German Reyes, Economics
AI in Higher Education: Who Uses It, How, and Does It Hurt Learning?
Generative AI has swept through college campuses with unprecedented speed, but what do we actually know about its impact on student learning? Drawing on two studies at Middlebury College, this talk presents systematic evidence on how students are using AI tools and whether these tools deliver on their educational promise.

Cameron de Wet, Earth & Climate Science  
Past Rainfall and Wildfire Patterns in the Western US: New Perspectives from Caves and Climate Models
Anthropogenic activities are pushing the climate system toward a new, warmer state that is outside the bounds of what human societies have experienced. The warming climate is driving changes in rainfall and wildfire patterns across the western US, but how these dynamics will continue to evolve remains uncertain.

Pieter Broucke, History of Art & Architecture  
J. M. W. Turner, Saint Michael’s Mount, and Mont Saint-Michel
In 1811 J. M. W. Turner sketched Saint Michael’s Mount, a tidal island in Cornwall, England. Fifteen years later, he sketched Mont Saint-Michel, a tidal island in Normandy, France. In his London studio, Turner then made studies of both, a process that resulted in an oil painting of the former and a finished watercolor of the latter.

Erik Bleich, Political Science  
Culture War Politics: How the United States and Europe got “Woke”
Over the past decade, the culture wars have become a core component of political struggles in the United States and in many European countries.

Gloria Gonzalez Zenteno, Luso-Hispanic Studies  
The Invisible Mask: Tales of Latin American Ingenuity and Grace
What is a mask good for? Concealing, of course. And, in Gloria Estela González Zenteno’s new book of fiction, a mask reveals and empowers. Her stories recreate moments of grace in places spanning our continent such as Valparaíso, Tegucigalpa, Guadalajara, Sinaola, Bridport, or the Champlain Islands.

Casey Schine, Biology  
Nutrient Pathways from the Abyss: Hydrothermal Influence on Surface Ecosystems in the Southern Ocean
Hydrothermal vents in the waters surrounding Antarctica have long been dismissed as insignificant sources of surface micronutrients due to their depth—typically 2000–4000 meters—and presumed isolation from surface processes.