Gregory Smith, the Lloyd P. Johnson-Norwest Professor of English and the Liberal Arts, recently won a 2012 Minnesota Book Award for his collection of short stories, The Law of Miracles and Other Stories. We have a video excerpt of Smith reading from one of the stories. His book is available at the Carleton Bookstore, either on campus or via online ordering.

Student videographer Dan McAllister ’13 talked to Carleton physics students about their projects and experiences in the physics fair.

A collection of student acts called “We Speak,” celebrates Black History Month and is sponsored by the Black Students Alliance (BSA). Carleton media relations videographer Dan McAlister ’13 interviews Beserat Kelati ’12 (Houston, Texas) and Robert Mills ’12 (Chicago), BSA board members, about the student organization and the purpose of “We Speak” as an event.

“Farragut North,” loosely based on Howard Dean’s 2004 Democratic primary campaign, opened this past weekend at the Weitz Center for Creativity. Directed by associate professor of theater David Wiles, the play is billed as “a classic tale of hubris set against a contemporary landscape—about the lust for power and the costs one will endure to achieve it.” Presented by the Carleton Players, a video trailer of the production is available. Tickets for the performance, which continues February 24-25, are available online.

The Stuart Pimsler Dance & Theater (SPDT) performed at Carleton on Friday, Jan. 6, kicking off the winter term programming in the Weitz Center for Creativity. Dan McAlister ’13 interviewed Stuart Pimsler, who also talked about the collaborative class he taught at Carleton during the winter term, which brought politics and dance together in a unique but interesting cross-disciplinary way, and showed footage of the company’s performance in the Weitz Center Theater. The performance was supported by funding from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Legacy Amendment.

Dan McAlister ’13 checks in with the Carleton Student Experimental Theater Board and their 24-Hour Show project. The team of students writes, casts, rehearses and performs a series of plays in a 24-hour time period, making for some interesting, creative work and a sleep-deprived group of Carls.

Laurel Bradley, director and curator in the Perlman Teaching Museum and senior lecturer in art and art History, gives us a tour of the Weitz Center for Creativity’s museum space. She talks about exactly what it means for Carleton to have such a facility and gives us a sneak preview of the two winter term exhibits. “A Complex Weave: Women and Identity in Contemporary Art” is on display in the museum’s Braucher Gallery through March 11, while the Kaemmer Family Gallery hosts “Running the Numbers: Portraits of Mass Consumption” at the same time.

The Carleton College “Thrillin for a Chillin” Polar Plunge squad raised more $1,700 for Northfield Area Special Olympics. The team, comprised of eight Carleton students and two Carleton staff members, participated in the state-wide event by plunging into the frigid waters in Rochester, Minn.

In what has become a Carleton tradition, the Gods of Plastic (GOP) Ultimate frisbee club team raffles off the chance to shave and cut the hair of team members. Selected team members don’t shave in November and December, growing out their hair and facial hair for the two months before returning to campus. The fund-raising effort helps the club pay for their travels throughout the spring term. Satchel Kaplan-Allen ’13 has the video feature on this unique and zany event held by the 2010 Division 3 Ultimate champions.

Back in mid-April, Bassekou Kouyate and the band Ngoni Ba performed at Carleton’s Great Hall in front of an energetic crowd in Great Hall. Josiah Burns ’12 produced a video of the performance, while Nate Ryan ’10 shared a photo slide show of his vivid images of the event.