Homewood's Y2K response team counts down to Jan. 1

The Homewood campus is ready to do battle with that pesky millennium bug. Although each department during the past several years has evaluated and tested for all known possibilities concerning potential Y2K problems, a response team, chaired by Elizabeth Rodier, director of Telecommunication Services, has been put in place to handle any unforeseen occurrences. The response team--made up of representatives from offices such as Security, Facilities Management and Hopkins Information Technology Services--has been meeting for seven months to consider possible Y2K-related scenarios and to develop appropriate contingency plans.

A dedicated phone line, 410-516-2000, has been established to handle questions or concerns regarding the Y2K issue.

Additional information about the university and Y2K will appear in The Gazette as it becomes available.

Security Office alerted to razor blades arriving in mail

JHMI Corporate Security Services has been notified that an animal rights group has apparently followed through on its threat of sending razor blades in envelopes to primate research centers across the United States.

On Oct. 25, three such envelopes were reportedly received by researchers at Tulane University, the Oregon Regional Primate Center and the Oregon Health Science Center. The razor blade could be seen through the envelope when held up to the light.

The mailings are described as No. 10 white envelopes with blue liners bearing a Las Vegas postmark, a handwritten address and a $.33 flag stamp. There is no return address.

Anyone receiving such an envelope or any other suspicious envelope or package is advised not to open it and to call the Security Office at 410-516-7777 or 410-516-4600 immediately.

Alice McDermott to deliver the George B. Udvarhelyi Lecture

Alice McDermott, a National Book Award winner and writer in residence in The Writing Seminars, will deliver the George B. Udvarhelyi Lecture, titled "Souls without Bodies: Fiction as Therapy," at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 10, in the Mountcastle Auditorium of the Preclinical Teaching Building, JHMI.

Udvarhelyi, professor emeritus of neurosurgery, in 1977 founded the Office of Cultural Affairs, which is sponsoring this event. In recognition of his contributions to the arts and humanities in the medical institutions, his colleagues and friends in 1993 endowed the lectureship named in his honor.

McDermott is the author of four highly acclaimed works of fiction, including That Night, which was nominated for the National Book Award and the Pen/Faulkner Award, and At Weddings and Wakes, which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Charming Billy, her most recent work, received the 1998 National Book Award for fiction; the book is currently under option for a film.

Morning Star to replace Anam at Evergreen concert

Morning Star, one of New York's most popular Irish music groups, will perform at 8 p.m., Friday, Nov. 12, at the Evergreen Carriage House in place of the originally scheduled band, Anam, which canceled its U.S. concert tour.

The group's lively, eclectic mixture of traditional and original Irish music has met with rave reviews and several stage and film credits, including Frank McCourt's The Irish and How They Got That Way. The group also provided music at the memorial mass for John F. Kennedy Jr. at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City.

Admission to the concert is $10 per person and includes a reception to meet the artists. For reservations, call 410-516-0341.

Global warming expert to address myths and realities

Michael MacCracken, executive director of the National Assessment Coordination Office of the U.S. Global Change Research Program, will speak about "Global Warming: Myth or Threat?" at noon on Wednesday, Nov. 10, in Shriver Hall on the Homewood campus.

His talk will focus on the myths and realities of global warming as well as the combined research effort of 10 federal agencies to understand and improve predictions of climate change and greenhouse warming, ozone depletion and the long-term impact of humans on the environment.

MacCracken holds a bachelor's degree in engineering from Princeton and a doctorate in applied science from the University of California. Prior to his current work, he was chief scientist for the Hardware, Advanced Mathematics and Model Physics project at the Department of Energy, and at the Livermore National Laboratory he led development of a San Francisco Bay Area air-quality model used to develop the region's successful air-quality control plan.

This lecture is part of the Wednesday Noon Series. Admission is free.

Real Estate Institute releases report on local business trends

Leading commercial real estate and related industry experts expect the good times to continue rolling for the real estate and broader business community in the Baltimore/Washington region, despite persistent problems that are common or unique to each market, according to Trend Watch 2000, a comprehensive periodic survey conducted by the Johns Hopkins University Real Estate Institute.