News & Stories

All Feature Stories Research News & Awards Newsmakers Q&A Community Profiles
Kotkin Crafts Comprehensive Portrait of Stalin's Place in the World May 19, 2015
Kotkin Crafts Comprehensive Portrait of Stalin's Place in the World
The first course historian Stephen Kotkin taught as a member of Princeton University's faculty, "Seminar in the History of Soviet Russia," met for the first time 26 years ago, on Thursday, Sept. 21, 1989. According to the University's course listing, the seminar focused on the "birth of a new society in the throes of revolution" and included a "special focus on the Stalin period," a particular interest of the newly minted assistant professor, who had earned his Ph.D. from the University of California-Berkeley in 1988 and spent the first half of 1989 in the Soviet Union as part of a research exchange. Fifty-one days after that first class session, on…
Princeton School of Public and International Affairs logo on a grey background.
Hypersegregated Cities Face Tough Road to Change May 18, 2015
Hypersegregated Cities Face Tough Road to Change
Baltimore, Maryland, and Ferguson, Missouri, share more than being the sites of racial strife over the past year. Both are part of metropolitan areas where black residents have been hypersegregated for the past four decades, according to Princeton University researchers."Hypersegregation produces high levels of social isolation from mainstream society, but also high concentrations of poverty and disadvantage," said Douglas Massey, the Henry G. Bryant Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs and director of Princeton's Office of Population Research. "If you look at the cityscape of the United States, hypersegregated cities are the places where our…
Princeton School of Public and International Affairs logo on a grey background.
Students Examine How Ongoing Conflicts Influence Diplomacy Techniques May 18, 2015
Students Examine How Ongoing Conflicts Influence Diplomacy Techniques
On April 27, the “Diplomacy and Chronic Conflicts” undergraduate policy task force presented its research and recommendations at the United Nations and The United States Mission to the United Nations, both in New York City. Led by Daniel Kurtzer, S. Daniel Abraham Visiting Professor of Middle East Policy Studies and lecturer at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and former U.S. ambassador to Egypt and to Israel, the seminar looked at case studies in which ongoing conflicts challenged classic diplomacy techniques. “Our trip to the U.N. gave us incredible insights into the inner workings of the diplomacy we’d only previously…
Princeton School of Public and International Affairs logo on a grey background.
Snowden Participates in Live, Online Discussion at Princeton May 14, 2015
Snowden Participates in Live, Online Discussion at Princeton
On May 2, more than 350 people gathered at the Friend Center at Princeton University to watch a live discussion between and journalist Barton Gellman '82, a visiting professor at Princeton's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and Edward Snowden, former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor who was charged espionage after leaking documents about NSA intelligence programs. Snowden participated in the conversation, which was webcast live, by way of a Google Hangout from Russia, the country that granted him asylum.The event was sponsored by the Center for Information Technology, the Program in Law and Public Affairs and the…
Felten Joins White House as Deputy Chief Technology Officer May 11, 2015
Felten Joins White House as Deputy Chief Technology Officer
Edward Felten, a Princeton University computer scientist who is a leading expert on computer security, has been named U.S. Deputy Chief Technology Officer in the White House's Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).Felten, who is Princeton's Robert E. Kahn Professor of Computer Science and Public Affairs, came to the University in 1993 and since 2006 has held a joint appointment with the Department of Computer Science and the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. In 2005, he was named director of Princeton's Center for Information Technology Policy (CITP), which is supported by the Wilson School and School of Engineering…
Princeton School of Public and International Affairs logo on a grey background.
Video Chat Highlights Ebola Response, Lessons Learned May 11, 2015
Video Chat Highlights Ebola Response, Lessons Learned
Raphael Frankfurter, a 2013 Princeton graduate and executive director of the nonprofit group Wellbody Alliance, participated in a live video chat Thursday, May 7, to discuss the group's response to Ebola in Sierra Leone and the lessons learned from the outbreak.Frankfurter spoke with João Biehl, the Susan Dod Brown Professor of Anthropology and co-director of Princeton's Program in Global Health and Health Policy. The conversation was hosted by Elisabeth Donahue, associate dean for public and external affairs at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Frankfurter and Biehl are panelists at the upcoming Princeton-Fung Global…
A Deadly Shadow: Measles May Weaken Immune System Up to Three Years May 07, 2015
A Deadly Shadow: Measles May Weaken Immune System Up to Three Years
The measles virus can cause serious disease in children by temporarily suppressing their immune systems. This vulnerability was previously thought to last a month or two, however, a new study shows that children may in fact live in the immunological shadow of measles for up to three years, leaving them highly susceptible to a host of other deadly diseases.Published in the journal Science, the study, led by researchers from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, provides epidemiologic evidence that measles may throw the body into a much longer-term state of …
WooCast: The History of Plagues May 05, 2015
WooCast: The History of Plagues
Epidemics. Throughout history, they have obliterated populations and shattered economies. Crippling the public with fear, epidemics have disrupted society, politics and cultures. Some epidemics have been so deadly, so expansive that they've literally transformed our historical landscape. Whether it was the Justinian Plague of the 6th century, the Black Death in the Middle Ages or HIV/AIDS in modern Africa, past plagues provide us with powerful lessons for the future. Now, as we grapple with the ongoing Ebola crisis – which has taken over 10,000 lives – we must not only look forward. We need to look back. We need to ask: What approach does Ebola…
Princeton School of Public and International Affairs logo on a grey background.
Gift Establishes Kahneman and Treisman Center for Behavioral Science and Public Policy at Princeton May 04, 2015
Gift Establishes Kahneman and Treisman Center for Behavioral Science and Public Policy at Princeton
A $10 million gift will create the Daniel Kahneman and Anne Treisman Center for Behavioral Science and Public Policy at Princeton, enabling the University to strengthen its leading role in this emerging field and improve the development of effective policymaking.The donation comes from a Princeton parent who wishes to remain anonymous. He has long been an admirer of the work of Kahneman, a Nobel laureate, the Eugene Higgins Professor of Psychology Emeritus at the University and a professor of psychology and public affairs emeritus; and Treisman, Princeton's James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor of Psychology Emerita.During the past 15…
Creating a Network of "Builders" April 30, 2015
Creating a Network of "Builders"
"Making government work."On the surface, the phrase seems simple. For a government to run efficiently, it needs to take the right steps — a strategic political dance. But perfecting the choreography, knowing which steps to take and when, poses challenges for governments across the world, especially in hard-to-reach places.That's why this spring semester Jennifer Widner, professor of politics and international affairs at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, introduced an online version of her course "Making Government Work in Hard Places." Offered alongside Widner's traditional graduate-level course with 19…
Deaton Elected to National Academy of Sciences April 28, 2015
Deaton Elected to National Academy of Sciences
Angus Deaton, the Dwight D. Eisenhower Professor of International Affairs and a professor of economics and international affairs, has been elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences. He is among 84 new members and 21 foreign associates elected Tuesday, April 28, in recognition of achievements in original research.
Class Snapshot: 'Ebola in 2014: The Science, Society and Politics of a Modern Epidemic' April 28, 2015
Class Snapshot: 'Ebola in 2014: The Science, Society and Politics of a Modern Epidemic'
Class: "Ebola in 2014: The Science, Society and Politics of a Modern Epidemic" Description: This course, offered primarily to juniors and seniors, focused on the current Ebola epidemic in West Africa. Throughout the semester, students examined the public health science of Ebola, the social aspects of the epidemic and the national and international politics related to the response. "The Ebola crisis is a significant public concern. It was important to have this discussion at Princeton, especially while the attention is so focused on the epidemic," said Keith Wailoo, vice dean of Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International…
The senior thesis of Princeton student Hanna Kim examines the civil society response to earthquakes in China and Japan over the last decade. Kim is a major in the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs who is interested in pursuing a career in U.S.-East Asia relations.
Breaking Ground in East Asian Earthquake Disaster Relief April 20, 2015
Breaking Ground in East Asian Earthquake Disaster Relief
In 2008, a magnitude-7.9 earthquake struck China's Sichuan province, leaving more than 87,000 people dead or missing, and millions homeless. Three years later, the magnitude-9.0 Tohoku earthquake hit Japan, causing a tsunami that covered more than 200 square miles, killing more than 18,000 people and causing a nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima power plant. These natural catastrophes motivated Princeton student Hanna Kim's senior thesis, "When Disaster Strikes: A Comparative Study of Civil Society Response to Earthquakes in China and Japan," and led her to travel to East Asia over winter break of 2014 to conduct field research. A major in the Woodrow…
WWS Reacts: Iran and the Path to a Nuclear Agreement April 14, 2015
WWS Reacts: Iran and the Path to a Nuclear Agreement
A preliminary agreement to limit Iran's nuclear program was reached April 2 by Iran and six world powers: the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, China, France, Russia, U.S. and the U.K. – or the P5 – plus Germany, a group commonly referred to as the P5+1. Since its release, some have criticized the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) – to be finalized by June – that details the key parameters to ratchet down Iran's nuclear program. We discussed the agreement and its implications with three scholars at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs: Daniel C. Kurtzer, Lecturer and S…
Alumna Kate Grant Gives a Voice to the World’s Poorest Women April 02, 2015
Alumna Kate Grant Gives a Voice to the World’s Poorest Women
Fatima went into labor with her first child at the age of 16. As is custom in her nomadic community in western Sudan, she planned to deliver the baby at home. But after three days of complications, she embarked on a half-day trek by camel to the nearest hospital. When she arrived, her baby was delivered stillborn by Caesarian section. But Fatima’s journey did not end there.Fatima’s prolonged labor caused an obstetric fistula – a hole between the vagina and rectum or bladder. The only solution is surgery, which she couldn’t afford. After returning home, her husband divorced her, blaming the smell created by the continuous leak of urine caused by the…