Poet McMichael to read ‘Capacity’

SUSAN MENNING

UC Irvine kicks off its 40th anniversary festivities later this

spring, but the School of Humanities is getting an early start. In

celebration of its own 40th, James McMichael, award-winning poet and

co-director of UCI’s highly ranked graduate program in creative

writing, will read from his forthcoming book “Capacity” on March 12.

Considered one of the nation’s finest poets, McMichael writes

about everyday things -- marriage, houses, fishing -- but according

to U.S. poet laureate Robert Pinsky, in a way that “discovers the

profound in the ordinary.” The free, public event will be held at 7

p.m. in UCI’s Crystal Cove Auditorium.

UCI’s School of Humanities focuses on the study of language,

culture, history and religion, imparting students with critical

analytical tools -- ways of seeing, knowing, explaining, describing

and understanding -- that enable them to better comprehend and

interact with the people and cultures around them.

Karen Lawrence, humanities dean, said “UCI is becoming a real

cultural and intellectual destination for the community. In the

coming month, renowned poets, artists and scholars demonstrate how

the humani- ties enrich the lives not only of our students, but of

the Orange County community as well.”

David Byrne explores

the art of PowerPoint

In March, humanities and the Claire Trevor School of the Arts will

present Talking Heads rocker, composer and artist David Byrne, who

will display and discuss his latest project, “I [love] PowerPoint,”

which turns the popular presentation tool into an avant-garde art

medium.

“It started off as a joke -- using this symbol of corporate

salesmanship (or lack thereof) as art, but then the work took on a

life of its own, as I realized I could create pieces that were

beautiful and moving, despite the limitations of the medium,” said

Byrne, lead singer and guitarist of the new wave band Talking Heads.

Byrne was inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame in 2002 and

won an Academy Award in 1987 for “The Last Emperor” score.

Byrne’s free presentation takes place at 7:30 p.m. March 10, in

100 Humanities Instructional Building. Information: (949) 824-3638.

HUMAN GENOME

PROJECT TO BE DISCUSSED

Eric Lander, one of the principal leaders of the Human Genome

Project, has led the development of many tools essential to the study

of genomics and their applications to the understanding of cancer and

other diseases. Director of the Whitehead Institute/MIT Center for

Genome Research -- as well as geneticist, molecular biologist and

mathema- tician -- Lander will present “The Human Genome Project and

Beyond” as part of the 2004-05 Chancellor’s Distinguished Fellows

Series.

The free, public lecture takes place at 8 p.m. Friday in the

Student Center’s Crystal Cove Auditorium and is preceded by a

reception at 7 p.m. Reservations are required: (949) 824-7252.

TAKE A LOOK AT OTHER PLANETS, STARS

Community members are invited to view Saturn, the Orion Nebula and

star clusters through UCI telescopes, along with a slide show about

the formation of the Milky Way Galaxy, from 7 to 9 p.m. March 4 at

the UCI Observatory’s Visitor Night. Amateur astronomers are

encouraged to bring their own telescopes to the event as well.

The observatory is tucked away behind University Hills, the

campus’ faculty-staff housing development. Directions: (949)

824-6911, during business hours.

COMPUTER GRAPHICS AND THE FOURTH DIMENSION

New developments in computer graphics are opening up powerful new

ways to visualize, interpret and manipulate phenomena, not just in

two or three dimensions, but also in four-dimensional spaces. How

will these insights change the way we view art, literature and

geometric structures?

Learn more about this topic, which has intrigued philosophers,

artists, theologians, scientists and mathematicians for centuries, at

6:30 p.m. Friday in Social Sciences Plaza A, Room 1100, when Tom

Banchoff, president of the Mathematical Assn. of America, presents

“Four Dimensional Worlds: From Flatland to Interactive

Hypergraphics.” Information: (949) 824-8651.

Many thanks to Daily Pilot readers who are responding to our

column. Please stay in touch, and let us know how we can help you

become better connected with the top-ranked research university right

here in your backyard.

* SUSAN MENNING is assistant vice chancellor of communications at

UC Irvine. She can be reached at [email protected].