What does it mean to be mentally healthy? The answer has changed over time, says philosopher and historian of science Anya Plutynski. Her research on early 20th-century “mental hygiene” practitioners shows that some providers of the era sought to establish factors and skills that boosted patients’ mental health and prevented symptoms of mental illness from arising. That’s a different goal today’s standard of care, which more often equates mental health with the mere absence of the symptoms of mental illness. With her book-in-progress, “Making Mental Health,” Plutynski, a Faculty Fellow in the Center for the Humanities, is tracking the history of this early movement and considering why their approach was abandoned.

Thinking about Mechanisms

A scholar of Caribbean literatures and cultures, PhD candidate Karla Aguilar Velásquez sees her research as deeply connected with her practice as curator and museum educator. She shares her recent work with COCA that invites visitors to interact with the exhibitions — and each other.

Graduate students from a range of departments and programs were selected for their exceptional contributions in the classroom.

Xuming He is a renowned leader in the fields of robust statistics, quantile regression, Bayesian inference, and post-selection inference. He will join Arts & Sciences from the University of Michigan.

As part of the Center for the Literary Arts Speaker Series, award-winning author Anna Moschovakis will participate in a panel discussion and reading April 13 and 14.