Winter 2008 - Trojan Family Magazine





	Winter 2008 FEATURES Corporate Therapist Michàlle Mor Barak is in the vanguard of a new breed of management experts teaching students – and corporations – how to avoid cross-cultural disconnects. By Elizabeth Segal Oh-rientation! Welcome to USC’s new student orientation, an all-university extravaganza orchestrated, in the words of one admiring parent, “with the precision of a military machine.” By Diane Krieger Watt Now? Launched earlier this year, the USC Energy Institute is a think tank aimed at building a community of energy and environmental researchers and – perhaps most important – helping form good policy. By Carl Marziali COLUMNS Editor’s Note President’s Page Trojans believe in going for the gold, in aiming for the top, in capturing the prize. Last Word Exploring the fascination of islands, atolls and archipelagos. [Last Word] Casus Belli - Answers - Autumn 2008 DEPARTMENTS Mailbag Pats, pans and other observations and opinions from readers. What’s New News and notes on all things Trojan. People Watch Trojans breaking records in Beijing; and an urban planner who sees grungy rock clubs and hip designers as drivers of city economies. Global Horizons Green structures provide shelter to victims left homeless by China’s devastating earthquake; and two new USC Annenberg programs reflect the global nature of the ongoing communication revolution. Lab Work What happens on the Amazon doesn’t necessarily stay there; helping MySpace keep serving millions; and pooch-powered autism research. Arts & Culture Imagineering in Fort Worth; and all you ever wanted to know about Boris Pasternak. Shelf Life The African journey of Thurgood Marshall; and what dolphins and apes have in common (hint: brainpower). Family Ties A new lift for an old house; and alumni want to keep student radio station KSCR rocking on. Cool Nixon It probably wasn’t the cold, since it was mid-October in 1960 when then-vice president Richard Milhous Nixon spoke to students on the steps of Doheny Memorial Library. Alumni Profile Jim Wiatt ’69 Alumni Profile Stanley Benson Viltz ’64, MPA ’74 Alumni Profile Kevin Conrad ’92 In Memoriam George Nicholas Boone DDS ’46, longtime friend of the university, life trustee and leading Southern California philanthropist In Memoriam Katherine Bogdanovich Loker ’40, a philanthropist and one of USC’s most generous benefactors On the cover: Green Power. Photograph by Chris Stein