Wheaton College Alumni Magazine Winter 2013 | Page 10

WHEATON news STUDENT NEWS Wheaton Professor and Students Present at Psychological Science Conference Jacob Gordon ’13, Susie Lee ’13, and when it really appeared all at once. The Isaac Miller ’12 co-authored a presentation illusion occurs when the line’s appearance titled “Anisotropies in illusory line motion” is preceded by an attentional cue. It is with Dr. Raymond Phinney, associate thought that one’s attention to the cue professor and chair of undergraduate p syenhances visual processing of one end of chology, at the Association for Psychological the line more than the other end, resulting Science Conference held in May 2012. in a perception of line growth rather than Dr. Phinney’s research concerns how sudden onset.” humans process motion and depth By measuring and recording how information and use that information the illusion varies depending on certain to interact with the world. Dr. Phinney variables, Dr. Phinney and his students explains: “Illusory line motion is the hope to gain a better understanding of the perception that a line grew to its full length role of attention in visual perception. On an excursion to Trolltunga, a scenic Norwegian cliff. Last summer, David Ko ’14, Jeremy Petersen Symphony Orchestra Wins Third Under the direction of conductor Dr. Daniel Sommerville, the Wheaton College Symphony Orchestra earned third place in The American Prize for Orchestral Performance, college/ university division, 2012. Founded in 2009, The American Prize is a series of new, nonprofit national competitions for best-recorded performances by ensembles and individuals each year at the professional, college/ university, church, community and secondary school levels. “That our Symphony Orchestra has been given this honor,” says Dr. Michael Wilder, dean of the Conservatory, arts, and communication, “is a strong endorsement of the high musical standards and accomplishments of our students and faculty. This prize placed Wheaton College’s Symphony Orchestra among top flight finalists, including Florida State University, Oklahoma State University, University of Denver, and University of North Carolina.” The award-winning recording included performances of Nielsen’s Symphony No. 2; Ravel’s Tombeau de Couperin; and Mahler’s Songs of a Wayfarer, with Gerard Sundberg, baritone (and voice professor at Wheaton’s Conservatory of Music). The recording was made, mixed, and mastered at Wheaton, under the direction of Brian Porick ’98. The 80-piece orchestra also recently played for the 2012 College Orchestra Directors Association national conference at Northwestern University. While there, orchestra members worked with top graduate and undergraduate conducting students at the conference conducting workshop, with Victor Yampolsky as Master Teacher. 8 ’14, and Julie Flaherty ’12 served in the city of Bergen, Norway, with OCO’s Youth Hostel Ministry. Students Serve in Summer Ministry This past summer, 76 Wheaton students served through Wheaton’s Office of Christian Outreach (OCO), traveling to more than 13 countries and three different urban centers in the U.S. Thanks to partnerships with international and national organizations, they gained experiences ranging from shadowing doctors in hospitals in Ghana and Bolivia, to teaching in the Dominican Republic and Hong Kong. Rev. Brian Medaglia, director of OCO, traveled with students to visit Hospitals of Hope, an OCO partner organization in Bolivia. Andrew Kilgore ’14 says, “This trip prompted us to more intentionally consider our role as Christians in a context like Bolivia and how we can use medicine as a platform for proclaiming the gospel, even in the midst of pervasive poverty and injustice.”