News: James Maycock on Gil Scott-Heron

Gil Scott Heron - music pioneer, icon, lost soul - died on Monday. UEA Alum and awesome documentary maker James Maycock wrote an obituary for the Independent, and he's kindly allowed us to reproduce it here.

News: High Water Everywhere

High water in New Orleans, from the Times-Picayune

As the Mississippi River experiences its worst floods for decades, here's a selection of the best stories available online.

Beyond Cowboys and Indians: The American West in Film, Television and History

Advance warning that two UEA students, Elizabeth Rawitsch from FTV and Beth Southard from HIS, are going to be giving a public lecture at the 2nd Air Division Memorial Library at the Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library.

Guest Post: Andy Rudalevige on Libya

Friend of AMS and Dickinson College political scientist Andy Rudalevige is guest-blogging for The Monkey Cage this week, and we're very pleased that he's allowed us to cross-post his thoughts on the War Powers Resolution and the Libya ‘no fly zone’ - available after the break.

Guest Post: Rob Velella

Rob Velella as Nathaniel Hawthorne

Containing Multitudes is very proud to present a guest post from Rob Velella! Rob Velella is an independent literary historian and playwright specializing in American literature of the nineteenth century. As a scholar, Velella has published articles and presented academic papers on figures as varied as Rufus Griswold, Oliver Wendell Holmes, and Walt Whitman. He served as guest curator for "Margaret Fuller: Woman of the Nineteenth Century" at Harvard's Houghton Library and as research associate for "The Raven in the Frog Pond: Edgar Allan Poe and Boston" for the Boston Public Library. In addition to his dramatic presentations, he maintains the American Literary Blog, an "almost-daily celebration of important (and not-so-important) dates in 19th-century American literary history."

Research Seminar: Maria Sabina Alexandru

At this week's research seminar, UEA alum Maria-Sabina Alexandru (University of Bucharest) will be talking about: ‘Surreal Transatlantic Dialogues: Forgiven Submarine by Ruxandra Cesereanu and Andrei Codrescu.’

Wednesday, 16th February, Room 1.16, 5 pm- 7 pm. Refreshments provided. All welcome!

News: Fulbright Commission Awards

If you're interested in postgraduate study in the USA, the Fulbright Commission has just opened applications for the UK Fulbright Awards for 2012-13. More information is available on their website, but in the meantime here are some snippets that might be useful:

Information Session on Your Campus

Join the Fulbright advising team for an information session on "Postgraduate Study in the USA" on your campus. This talk will cover the benefits of postgraduate study in the USA and provide an overview of the application process and funding options, including the Fulbright scholarships. Check to see if we are visiting your university on our online calendar.


USA Grad School Day
9 March 2011
6 - 9 pm
London (American School in London, St John's Wood)

For more in-depth information, attend our USA Grad School Day workshop. This event provides students with an insider's view of how to successfully navigate the US postgraduate admissions process. Fulbright advisors and experts in the field will cover a variety of topics: choosing the right institution, admissions exams, the application components and funding opportunities, including the Fulbright Awards for 2012-13.

For more information and to register, go here.
Unable to attend? Students can email gradschoolday@fulbright.co.uk to receive information about a possible webinar in early May.

Fulbright Scholarships for 2012-13
Application Available: 1 February 2011
Deadline: 31 May 2011

The Fulbright Awards are tenable for postgraduate study or research in any academic field, at any accredited institution in the US. Approximately 50 scholarships are given to UK citizens each year, including 20-30 at the postgraduate level. Visit the awards section of our website for more information: http://www.fulbright.co.uk/fulbright-awards  (Non-UK citizens are encouraged to use our advisory service in the UK, but to apply for Fulbright scholarships through the office in their home country.)


Fulbright Advisory Service

Fulbright's advising team is the official source of information on US higher education for the UK. Visit our website for a step-by-step guide to applying to US universities. Students may also contact our advisors via email, phone or in-person at our Resource Library in London.

We look forward to supporting your interest in postgraduate study in the USA and seeing you at an upcoming event!

News: Interdisciplinary Seminar Series, How Wide is the Atlantic?

Alongside our regular series of research seminars, this semester the School of American Studies is very pleased to be hosting the Arts & Humanities Interdisciplinary Seminar Series, "How Wide is the Atlantic?" Here's a brief introduction:

The Faculty of Arts and Humanities Interdisciplinary Graduate Seminar provides scholars in a variety of disciplines an opportunity to consult with one another about the broad implications of their work.  This year’s seminar revolves around the question, “How Wide is the Atlantic?”  We will examine transatlantic travel, migration, commerce, cultural exchange, expropriation and miscommunication up to the twenty-first century.  We will discuss novels, paintings and movies, diplomatic crises, insurrections and moral panics, assessing whether it continues to be appropriate to view Europe, Africa, the Caribbean and the Americas as component parts of a chaotic Atlantic World.

The next session takes place today (Monday February 7th) at 3pm in Arts 3.01. You can view a full schedule of seminars here. See you there.

News: Super Bowl XLV Link Round-Up

Super Bowl 45 is upon us, which must mean it's time for our annual link round-up.

• First things first: Super Bowl? There's an app for that.
• On the field, the Green Bay Packers are facing off against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Detroit Free-Press runs you through both teams. The Boston Herald gives you five things to look for during the game. The Guardian profiles controversial Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, whilst the Seattle Times does the same for Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers. NPR takes a look at why the Steelers go in as underdogs, whilst @Salon.com (and, undoubtedly, many others) will be livetweeting the game.
• Good timing: looks like they found a copy of Super Bowl 1.
• As ever, the advertisements are attracting as much attention as the game. Entertainment Weekly and NBC Philadelphia preview the spots, The New York Times looks at Fox Sports' rejection of a faith based commercial, Slate looks at other banned adverts, and CNN examines if Super Bowl adverts are actually bad for your health.
• Talking about bad for your health, the New York Times highlights research which suggests it might be best to give the whole thing a miss:

This year, a study in the journal Clinical Cardiology released on Monday warns that a loss by the hometown team in the big game leads to “increased deaths in both men and women, and especially older patients.” One of the authors said in a press release that “stress reduction programs or certain medications might be appropriate in individual cases.”

• Never mind the spectators. The real health scare hovering over this year's Super Bowl is the ongoing "concussion crisis." Recent research has demonstrated that the repetitive impacts received by players on the football field are directly linked to degenerative brain damage. The New York Times has been following the story closely for some time, and the New Yorker recently published a long article on the subject by Ben McGrath, which asks pertinently, "Does football have a future?" It was also picked up by the New York Review of Books blog, which asserted even more pointedly: "There is the reality behind the Super Bowl—superb young bodies being broken, and irretrievable harm being done to brains." Food for thought as you're watching the game.

Research Seminar: Anthony Howe

This is a double announcement: first, normal blogging service is now resumed. Look for periodic updates about life in the School of American Studies at the University of East Anglia and wider issues in American culture.

Second: at this week's research seminar, the UEA's very own Professor Anthony Howe will be talking about: "John Bull and Brother Jonathan: Cobden, America and the Liberal Mind."

Wednesday 2 February, 5pm-7pm in room 1.16.  All welcome. Refreshments provided. See you there!