Princeton Weekly Bulletin February 22, 1999 Nassau Notes
Bowen speaks on race, admissions Former Princeton President William Bowen, now president of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, will give a talk entitled "The Shape of the River" at 4:30 p.m. on February 25 in 1 Robertson Hall.     Bowen's book, The Shape of the River: Long-Term Consequences of Considering Race in College and University Admissions, written with former Harvard President Derek Bok, is an examination of affirmative action, including how race-sensitive admissions policies work and affect students of different races. It includes a study of the academic, employment and personal histories of more than 45,000 students of all races who attended academically selective universities between the 1970s and the early 1990s. The study reveals how much race-sensitive admissions increase the likelihood that blacks will be admitted to selective universities and demonstrates the effect that the termination of these policies would have on the number of minority students at different kinds of selective institutions. The book also reflects on the issue of whether the concept of "merit" is compatible with an effort to achieve a racially diverse student body.     The talk is sponsored by the Woodrow Wilson School.		Nigeria Studio McCarter Theater will present the Performance Studio of Nigeria in Things Fall Apart at 8:00 p.m. on February 23. Based on Chinua Achebe's novel, this African drama was created by the Nigerian playwright Biyi Bandele and American director Chuck Mike. Contemporary writers read Lunch Poems Edwin Torres will read his poetry and discuss his work on February 24. This is the first presentation in "Lunch Poems," a series organized by Assistant Professor of English Craig Dworkin in conjunction with the course Contemporary Poetry.     The series will present Paul Muldoon, Howard G.B. Clark '21 University Professor in the Humanities on March 31; linguistic philosopher Sianne Ngai on April 7; Yusef Komunyakaa, professor in the Council of the Humanities and Creative Writing, on April 14; conceptual artist Kenneth Goldsmith on April 28; and Bruce Andrews, one of the founding figures of "Language Poetry," on April 21.     Sponsored by the Department of English and the 250th Anniversary Fund for Innovation in Undergraduate Education, all readings will take place at 12:30 pm. in 4 McCosh Hall.
Fabric art This quilt is part of "Breaking Free," an exhibit of quilts and fabric collage by Ruth Carden on display in the Lucas Gallery, 185 Nassau St. Sponsored by the the Program in Visual Arts, the exhibit is on view through March 3, with an opening reception on February 23 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.		Halperin offers reflections of policy planner Morton Halperin will speak on "Defining American Interests in the Post&endash;Cold-War Era: Reflections of a Policy Planner" at 4:30 p.m. on February 22 in 1 Robertson Hall.     Currently director of the policy planning staff at the U.S. Department of State, Halperin served in the federal government during the Johnson and Nixon administrations and in the first Clinton administration. From 1994 to 1996 he was a special assistant to the president and senior director for democracy at the National Security Council.     Halperin has also worked for many years for the American Civil Liberties Union. He served as the director of the Center for National Security Studies from 1975 until 1992, focusing on issues affecting civil liberties and national security.     He is the author, coauthor or editor of more than a dozen books, among them Self-Determination in the New World Order, Nuclear Fallacy and Bureaucratic Politics and Foreign Policy.     His talk is sponsored by the Woodrow Wilson School.		Art Museum "Fragment of a Head" from Nigeria is part of the exhibit of African and African American art on display throughout the Art Museum celebrating Black History Month. (photo: Bruce White)
Rabinovich on Arab-Israeli relations Itamar Rabinovich will present a lecture entitled "Beyond the Siege: Arab-Israeli Relations at Century's End" at 8:00 p.m. on February 25 in Helm Auditorium, McCosh 50.     Israeli ambassador to the United States from 1993 to 1996, Rabinovich was also chief Israeli negotiator with Syria from 1992 to 1995. He is now Ettinger Professor of Contemporary Middle Eastern History at Tel Aviv University, where he was rector from 1990 to 1992.     A faculty member at Tel Aviv since 1971, he served as dean of humanities and director of the Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies, as well as professor of Middle Eastern history. He has held visiting appoint-ments at Princeton and the Institute for Advanced Study, as well as at Cornell, the University of Pennsylvania, the Smithsonian and other U.S. institutions.     Rabinovich's publications include The Brink of Peace, The Road Not Taken: Early Arab-Israeli Negotiations and Depatches from Damascus.				Men's basketball Princeton will play Cornell University on February 26 and Columbia University on February 27 in Jadwin Gym. Both games will begin at 7:30 p.m.
Classics Gallery Tales: Classical Mythology in the Art Museum by Betty Bonham Lies includes stories from classical mythology, illustrated by works in the collections of the Art Museum. One in a series of publications about the University, this booklet is for sale at the Art Museum or at the Communications Office in Stanhope Hall. Policy prohibits use of roofs University policy prohibits the use of roofs on campus for personal or social purposes because of the hazards of falls as well as the possibility of damage to roofs. With prior approval some roofs may be used for research and teaching; for permission call either Maintenance at 258-6607 or Environmental Health and Safety at 258-5294 (e-mail cantrell@princeton.edu.).