Kim will now spread the joy in her senior recital at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 6, in Babcock 127, along with her teacher, music professor Rebecca McCord.

“It is a delight to teach such a talented and dedicated piano student as A-Joo,” McCord said.

The recital includes Schubert’s Impromptu, Op. 90, No. 2; Beethoven’s Sonata in f minor, Op. 2, No. 1; as well as “Kiss the Rain” and “River Flows in You” by Korean composer and pianist Yiruma. McCord will join her student in a two-piano performance of Kabalevsky’s “Youth Concerto.”

Kim is an international affairs major completing an honors thesis on the reunification of North and South Korea. Examining possible scenarios and using the past reunification cases of Germany, Vietnam and Yemen, she attempts to find an ideal pathway toward Korea’s successful reunification.

Balancing her love of music and global affairs, Kim is also a Spanish minor and studied abroad through Sweet Briar’s Junior Year in Spain program last year. Despite two campus jobs — as resident advisor and library assistant — Kim still finds the time to participate in Tau Phi and Falls on Nose. After graduation, she plans to attend law school to study comparative international law or human rights law.

Kim’s piano recital is free and open to the public. For more information, please call (434) 381-6115 or email mccord@sbc.edu.

Kasey Stewart is an aspiring doctor who, in addition to double-majoring in art history and Spanish, is taking pre-med courses and minoring in Latin American studies. Her Pannell project, “Doctors Without Borders: Step One,” combines her passion for language with her dreams of becoming a doctor and helping children.

To explore her career goal of working as a pediatrician in Guatemala, Stewart has been analyzing Costa Rica’s health care system, its culture, and the history and inner workings of Doctors Without Borders. She also used the scholarship money to travel to Costa Rica in December and January to volunteer at an orphanage, which allowed her to experience the country’s culture and health care system first hand.

“I hope to apply this knowledge to suggest how Doctors Without Borders, or another health NGO, could help Guatemala achieve the same level of health services that Costa Rica has obtained,” she explained before the trip.

“My ultimate career goal is to lead Doctors Without Borders missions in Latin American countries. Experiencing a successful Latin American health care system, as well as getting the Spanish-speaking and cultural experience, will all help me be the best mission leader that I can possibly be.”

Costa Rica’s rainforest was one of several attractions Stewart visited during her monthlong stay.

The trip also gave the South Carolina native a taste of what it would be like to live abroad — and what it’s like when plans don’t work out.

Upon her arrival in San Jose, the orientation she was supposed to receive was canceled, leaving her to figure out everything on her own for the first few days.

“I thought I was prepared to travel alone, but I definitely wasn’t,” she admits.

Thankfully, she didn’t have to for very long. Fellow Sweet Briar student Ariel Taylor ’14 joined her two weeks later to also volunteer at the orphanage. Along with several other international students, the two spent weekdays tending to the young children and traveled around the country on the weekends, getting to know Costa Rica’s culture and wildlife — overall a “fantastic” experience, Stewart says.

But as things go with exploratory research projects, they don’t always yield the results one may have expected.

“Working with the children definitely reassured me that I want to work in pediatrics, but I also really enjoyed teaching the kids and I have always been passionate about education,” she said.

Stewart says she is now more interested in developmental pediatrics than emergency care, which is the primary focus of Doctors Without Borders.

“You can’t really volunteer in behavioral pediatrics,” she explained, adding that her goals have changed somewhat. While she still wants to work abroad as a doctor, it will have to be a more permanent position than those provided by Doctors Without Borders, since developmental pediatricians have to build relationships with their patients.

Stewart hopes to intern with a doctor in her hometown near Columbia during spring break to further explore the field. She’s also researching other international organizations that operate in Spanish-speaking countries.

Along with the practical experience she gained in Costa Rica, Stewart’s research has broadened her perspective on international health care aid, including its limitations.

“I have seen both the good and the bad side of international health care aid,” she said. “Obviously, western medicine has done wonders for the world, but there are also secret indigenous methods that are very important to those cultures and have clearly been working. Unfortunately, western medicine and international aid have a tendency to wipe out these wonderful health care approaches.”

Going forward, Stewart continues to explore everything there is to know about the subject — “good” or “bad.” It’s all part of the process that will get her one step closer to realizing her goals.

— Janika Carey

Image courtesy of Alexandra DiFeliceantonio

Alexandra Gold DiFeleceantonio ’08 is the lead author behind a recent study that explains why we can’t stop eating chocolate — among other things. The study, undertaken by scientists from the University of Michigan, was published in the journal Current Biology and is featured in an article in the Smithsonian’s online magazine and at scientificamerican.com.

The question they asked was: What is it in our neural system that prevents us from knowing when we’ve had enough? To find out, the researchers measured enkephalin levels in rats. Enkephalin is an opium-like chemical naturally occurring in the neostriatum, an area of the brain supposedly related to craving.

In the first step, the rats were offered unlimited amounts of M&Ms, while their enkephalin levels were monitored. When they started to eat, enkephalin levels surged. In the second step, the researchers injected synthetic enkephalin into the neostriatum to determine whether the chemical might actually cause the rats to eat more. The results were astonishing. With the stimulation, the rats ate twice as many candies as they did before.

“They ate the equivalent of a 150-pound human consuming seven pounds of M&Ms,” said DiFeliceantonio, who is a Ph.D. candidate in biopsychology at the University of Michigan.

But there was more to find out.

“We then asked whether the injection was making the rats just want to eat more or actually making the M&Ms taste better.”

Through a test in which lip-licking is used as an indicator, the researchers found that while the rats ate more, they didn’t like the M&Ms any more than before.

“So, enkephalin in this area is a purely motivational signal saying, ‘Eat more now!’ ” DiFeliceantonio explained.

“This means that the brain has more extensive systems to make individuals want to over-consume rewards than previously thought,” she said in the Smithsonian article. “It may be one reason why over-consumption is a problem today.”

Alexandra Gold diFeliceantonio ’08 is a Ph.D. candidate
at the University of Michigan.

The study may also explain some of the underlying mental reasons behind other addictions, the magazine notes.

“It seems likely that our enkephalin findings in rats mean that this neurotransmitter may drive some forms of over-consumption and addiction in people,” DiFeliceantonio said.

She began the study two years ago in collaboration with several chemists, as well as pharmacologist Omar Mabrouk and his mentor, Robert Kennedy, who measured the enkephalin levels using mass spectrometry. Kent Berridge, DiFeliceantonio’s current mentor and dissertation advisor, is the final author of the study.

DiFeliceantonio was accepted into the psychology program at the university immediately after graduating from Sweet Briar in 2008 with a double-major in psychology and Spanish. She will complete her Ph.D. next spring and is looking for a post-doctoral research position.

— Janika Carey

On March 28, 2012, seven Sweet Briar students were inducted into Sigma Delta Pi, the National Collegiate Hispanic Honor Society, in the Browsing Room of Cochran Library.

The largest foreign-language honor society in existence, Sigma Delta Pi was established on Nov. 14, 1919, at the University of California Berkeley. Sigma Delta Pi is devoted exclusively to deserving students of Spanish in four-year colleges and universities.

The society’s insignia is the royal seal of Fernando and Isabel, representing Castilla, León and Aragón; the colors are red and gold; the flower is the red carnation; and the motto is the Greek phrase “Spanías Didagéi Proágomen,” which means “Let’s go forth/continue forth under the teaching/guidance of the Spanish language.”

The Sweet Briar College chapter, Rho Omega, was established in 1990. Students of Spanish who meet the qualifications for membership are invited to join. This year, Rho Omega welcomed Rebecca Andrade ’12, María Cuevas ’14, Anna Donko ’14, Alanna Keanne ’12, Jackelinne Montero ’13, Abbey Wilson ’12 and Sissy Winstead ’12.

The initiation ceremony was conducted by current member Victoria Bradley ’12 and Spanish assistant Estefanía Fernández-Neto.

¡Felicidades a todas!

To be eligible for induction, members must maintain a high academic average, demonstrate a strong interest and enthusiasm in the study of Hispanic literatures and cultures, and complete upper level Spanish courses.

This year’s ceremony was held Monday, April 6 in the Browsing Room of Mary Helen Cochran Library and performed by current members Caroline Sapp ’09, Jessica Pisciotta ’09 and Alexandra Hiniker ’09.

“They Locked the Doors! Narremas of the Ycua Bolaños Tragedy” tells the story of an August 2004 supermarket firethat killed hundreds in Paraguay. Many of the victims were children, and the store’s owners ordered that the doors be locked, fearing customers would flee with merchandise they hadn’t paid for.

“This tragedy is unlike any other in Paraguayan history,” Olivera wrote. “The press coverage was too graphic through TV videos, sounds of despair on the radio tapes and newspaper pictures. Asunción is a small city — firefighters and reporters arrived very quickly to the scene. …

“The video tapes show the people from the streets trying to open the doors that were locked as soon as the fire started. … Everyone can be seen running towards the building to help. The video tapes show the first survivors yelling to denounce that the owner ordered the doors to be locked and pleading for their families, their friends, their children still inside.”

Luis Goytisolo

Goytisolo is author of many novels, travelogues and op-ed pieces. His novel “360º Diary” was recently translated into English by SBC Spanish professor Pam DeWeese. At the event, DeWeese will read from the English language version of Goytisolo’s novel.

DeWeese’s translation of “360º Diary” was released by Peter Lang Publishing in March 2008. It was the first of Goytisolo’s novels to be translated into English. “I have thought for a long time that something of his should be translated into English so, during my last sabbatical, I made it my project,” DeWeese said.

“I didn’t know if I would like translating — or would be any good at it — and certainly this author’s work is very challenging, given its richness of language and image, plays on words, levels of meaning, etcetera, but I tried it and really enjoyed it.”

DeWeese, who has taught at Sweet Briar for more than 15 years, has worked with Goytisolo for more than 20. While a doctoral student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, she wrote her dissertation on his work.

She also wrote a book, “Approximations to Luis Goytisolo’s Angagonia” about his 1,500-page novel, and a biography on the author for the Dictionary of Literary Biography.

“Of course, being able to consult with the author was wonderful,” DeWeese said. “I felt more confident that I was capturing his meaning, especially in difficult passages. [He] and I chose this novel from among his other works because the diary format makes it very easy to read for someone just becoming acquainted with his work, and yet the novel employs many of his major themes and [is] a good demonstration of his style.”

For more information on the lecture and reading, contact DeWeese at deweese@sbc.edu or (434) 381-6171.

Following Goytisolo in the International Writers Series will be South African novelist and playwright Zakes Mda. He will lecture on Wednesday, Nov. 12 and read from his work on Thursday, Nov. 13. Both events begin at 8 p.m. in Memorial Chapel and admission is free.

Titled “Piel de Angel,” or “Angel Skin,” the book deals with the pain associated with loss. “I am a poet,” Olivera writes on her Web site. “I aim for clarity and accessible poetry. Communication is my main goal, as I strive to reach the reader, to accompany a life journey, to help in any way, to provide solace.”

Olivera, a Paraguayan who writes in Spanish under her maiden name, Mereles, has taught at Sweet Briar since 2007. “Piel de Angel” is her fifth book; her sixth, “Cerranon las puertas” (“They Locked the Doors!”) will be released in a few months.

Her books have been published in Europe, the United States and South America and distributed in both the Americas and Europe. Her fourth book, “En tu mundo deshabitado” (“In Your Desolate World”), was featured at the 2007 Madrid Book Fair.

Olivera won her first poetry contests as an elementary and high school student, and studied to be an architect before leaving Paraguay to study literature in Spain. While in Europe, “Volviendo a Omega” (“Returning to Omega”), which she calls her “fondest book,” won a poetry prize.

She is working on her seventh and eighth books, one of which is based on critical research of Nicaraguan poet Ernesto Cardenal, a subject of her first book. For more information on Olivera and her books, visit her Web site.