In This Edition

Language and Literature

Part 1: Literature and Writing

Part 2: The Medium of Language

Part 3: Language Sciences and Science Languages

Questions & Answers

Prof. Isabelle de Courtivron Head of Foreign Languages and Literatures

Prof. Steven Pinker Author of The Language Instinct and Words and Rules

Prof. Anita Desai Award-winning novelist and writing instructor

Geoffrey A. Landis '80 NASA scientist and science fiction writer

Jade Wang '01 President of the MIT Science Fiction Society

Kelly Clancy '03 Prize winning short story author

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Literature and Writing

MIT students who plunge into the world of writing--to hone their craft and consort with practitioners--develop new intellectual muscles. Writing as a key to thinking broadens perspectives inside science and technology disciplines and extends the creative horizon. Over 1200 enrollments and a dozen majors a year in the MIT Program in Writing and Humanistic Studies (WHS) attest to strong interest in exposition and rhetoric, creative writing, and science and technical writing. The program helps students meet the communication requirement and find community and recognition. Annual Writing Prizes acknowledge outstanding student work like physics senior Kelly Clancy's story "Neville Island."

WHS connects MIT students and the community to acclaimed writers. Anita Desai, whose six novels include Journey to Ithaca, teaches creative writing. Alan Lightman, author of three novels, mostly recently The Diagnosis, and six science books, specializes in creative writing and physics. News and Science Feature Writing is taught by B.D. Colen, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of 10 books including OR: The True Story of 24 Hours in a Hospital's Operating Room.

A new Graduate Program in Science Writing focuses on writing about science for general audiences. Faculty include Boyce Rensberger, director of MIT's Knight Science Journalism Fellowship Program and author of four popular science books, including Life Itself: Exploring the Realm of the Living Cell.

Poets regularly visit campus through the WHS and Literature Department's joint series, Poetry@MIT, which is offering a tribute to the late John Wieners on May 2. The Literature Department offers courses from Black Women Writers to 19th Century Russian Novels. Classic topics like Shakespeare receive MIT treatment through Peter Donaldson's Shakespeare Electronic Archive, a multimedia Web-based teaching environment.

Henry Jenkins, who investigates digital aesthetics, media convergence, and youth culture, straddles literature and contemporary concerns as director of the Comparative Media Studies program. David Thorburn, author of Conrad's Romanticism, directs the MIT Communications Forum, which hosts lectures, forums and web-based activities examining changing media. Visit the Media in Transition Web site to hear audiotape presentations of "Transformations of the Book" and "Humor on the Web."

The world's largest open-shelf collection of science fiction is housed at the MIT Science Fiction Society Library. The group meets weekly, and membership is open to students and others. SFS alumni include NASA scientist and SF author Geoffrey Landis and Alexei Panshin, whose Abyss Web site offers hardcopy books and online works.

go on to Part 2: The Medium of Language

What Students Publish--From Rune to VooDoo The Office of the Arts lists student publications: literary/arts works, opinions, and the only "intentionally funny" MIT rag.

Playwrights-in-Performances Set for May 9-11 Three original student-written plays will be performed at 8 p.m.

Books Every Science Writer Should Read Recommendations from the Knight Science Journalism Program

New Communication Requirement Includes Speaking Class of 2005 engages in yearly instruction in writing and speaking.

Women and Writing The MIT Women's League will sponsor a panel discussion of women in writing on May 8.