Buzz

The Itsy Bitsy … Greta Binford?

Biologist and arachni-thusiast extraordinaire Greta Binford has received one of the highest honors in her field: a species of spider has been named for her. The Austrarchaea Binfordae, a tiny, venomous spider native to Australia, has recently been added to the list of living spider species. Binford hopes to travel to Australia one day to meet her namesake in person.

Presidential Gleeks

President Barry Glassner and student body president Annalisa Peterson joined forces this fall to host a campus-wide viewing party of the season premiere of Glee. Both presidents outed themselves as Gleeks (the unfortunate term applied to fans of the show) in an e-mail inviting the student body to an evening of pizza, popcorn, and everyone’s favorite musical high schoolers.

Got Pep?

Our students do—especially our reinvigorated pep band. After several years of silence, this new incarnation draws its members from the entire student body (not just music majors) along with a few alumni. Catch their noteworthy performances at Pioneer football and basketball home games.

Dance Extravaganza

For a short time in December, the Fir Acres Main Stage became home to Grecian goddesses, a two-headed mischief-maker, shadow monsters, amorphous blobs, and melodious divas. It was all part of Lewis & Clark’s 14th annual Dance Extravaganza, a colorful showcase of student-choreographed dance pieces.

Signs of the Times

Paper fliers and posters? That’s old school. Enter the big screen—specifically, ten 42” digital screens touting an ever-changing list of campus events and opportunities. You’ll find the screens in lobbies of several academic buildings and in Templeton Campus Center. Between final exams, it’s been noted that a handful of glassy-eyed, overworked students crowd around the monitors, apparently under the mistaken impression they are watching TV.

In Shuttle News …

The Pioneer Express, which offers free shuttle service for faculty and students to downtown Portland and back, is now being manned by EcoShuttle, a partnership which makes good ecological—as well as economic—sense for the college. Service has been reliable, and the wood-paneled interiors of the new Pio Express offer a shuttle experience that is at once homey and appealingly retro.

Pumpkin Toss

Pumpkin seeds filled the air as members of the Physics Club held their annual Pumpkin Launch in late October outside Olin. To launch the orange orbs, students employed a trebuchet, a medieval device used in siege warfare. We’ re pleased to report that all campus buildings remain intact.

The Department Formerly Known as …

Communication is now Rhetoric and Media Studies. In outlining the change, Department Chair Peter Christenson explained that the new name more accurately represents the foci of the Lewis & Clark program. Students in the department are still working on a convenient abbreviation—RhetMed? Rhemedia Studies? We’ll keep you posted.

—by Erica Terpening-Romeo CAS ’14