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Marianna Brown Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences
Carnegie Mellon University

February 2019
Dietrich College News
Forty-eight percent of 2018 CMU graduates took a Modern Languages course. Nationwide, there are only 7.5 modern language course enrollments per 100 students, according to a report from the Modern Language Association

For Susan G. Polansky , head of the Department of Modern Languages, that participation rate, and the fact that it has held steady since the university began tracking data in 2003, is remarkable.

“ Casop: A Requiem for Rice ,” is a new contemporary classical symphonic work that tells the stories of Africans enslaved on Lowcountry rice plantations. Composed for a full symphony orchestra and choir, the new work is an African and African-American inspired take on a classic requiem.  Edda L. Fields-Black , associate professor of  history , is the project's executive producer and librettist. Complimentary tickets for the CMU community are available in the History Department, 240 Baker Hall.

While advances in artificial intelligence (AI) are shaping society in both the short and long term, there can be negative consequences of this developing technology, said Carnegie Mellon University’s David Danks , the L.L. Thurstone Professor of Philosophy and Psychology and head of the Philosophy Deparment, at an alumni event hosted by Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar (CMU-Q).

Emily Kennedy (DC 2012), president and co-founder of  Marinus Analytics , transformed her work into a company that develops sophisticated machine learning tools to stop human trafficking.

Kennedy has received global recognition for her work. She was named to Forbes magazine’s 2019 list of  30 Under 30 Social Entrepreneurs  and was honored as a 2018  Toyota Mother of Invention .

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Upcoming Alumni Events
CMUThink Events
CMUThink puts you in the room with faculty whose research is changing the world. 

London: The Method Behind the Voting Madness
Featuring Danny Oppenheimer, professor, social and decision sciences and psychology
7 p.m., Feb. 13
Private Dining Room, 40th Floor, 110 Bishopgate, London

Atlanta: The Truth and Power of Stereotypes 
Featuring Chante Cox-Boyd, associate professor, psychology
6:30 p.m., Feb. 20
South City Kitchen – Buckhead, 3350 Peachtree Road NE, Atlanta

CMUConnect Networking Dinners
Expand your Tartan professional network at CMUConnect Networking Dinners. Held periodically in areas around the world, these dinners bring together small groups of alumni for food and conversation around a shared professional interest. 

Washington D.C. Women's Networking Dinner

D.C. Women's Networking Dinner
6:30 p.m. March 6
The Smith, 1314 U Street NW, Washington D.C.
Hosted by Anna Lorch (DC 1997), vice president, loyalty marketing, AARP.

Pittsburgh Networking Dinners hosted by Dietrich College alumni

Pittsburgh's New Economy
6 p.m., March 7
Spaceworks Bakery Square, 6425 Living Place, 2nd Floor, East Liberty
Hosted by Alan Houser (E 1987, DC 1989), consultant, Group Wellesley Inc.

Entrepreneurship
7 p.m., March 7
TMD Holdings, 461 Melwood Ave., Oakland
Hosted by Henry Wang (DC 1997, HNZ 1997), principal TMD Holdings and Tommy Wang (E 1998, HNZ 1998), executive chairman, guiltysoles.com, and CEO, classroomsalon.com.
Dietrich College in the News
Class Notes
Find out what's new with Dietrich College students and alumni in Class Notes .


Network with other alumni in the Dietrich College Alumni LinkedIn Group .
Personal Mentions
Read about news and accomplishments from the college's faculty and staff in this issue's Personal Mentions .

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