Leon Botstein: Music is so important because it has no purpose
“Music is so important because it has no purpose. Its only purpose is to remind us as human beings, about the power of our own imagination.” -Leon Botstein
UAB has awarded the 2014 Caroline P. and Charles W. Ireland Distinguished Visiting Scholar Prize to Dr. Leon Botstein. The award brings to campus outstanding scholars who are generally recognized as leaders in the arts and sciences. While at UAB, Botstein conducted a special performance of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra, at UAB’s Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center. Botstein also lectured and met with students and faculty in the UAB College of Arts and Sciences. He spoke with WBHM’s Michael Krall and the conversation began with Botstein describing his reaction when he found out he won the prize.
‘More relevant every day’ in the U.S.: A filmmaker documented Russia’s journalists
Julia Loktev's documentary My Undesirable Friends follows young independent journalists covering Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
Measles continues to spread in the US, but with some letup
As South Carolina's outbreak grows to 876 confirmed cases, vaccinations in the state surged in January. Cases have also been reported in two ICE detention facilities.
The Winter Olympics gets 8 new events, including its first new sport in decades
Ski mountaineering will make its Olympic debut this year, the first winter sport to do so since 2002. Skeleton, luge, ski jumping and moguls are also getting new events.
Team USA settles in to athletes’ villages, ‘smash’ pizzas
US Olympic athletes are arriving and settling into their digs for the next couple of weeks in Italy. Curlers are amazed by the mountain scenery in Cortina; figure skaters are plant fostering in Milan; and the big air slopestyle women are "smashing pizzas" in Livigno.
As Trump reshapes foreign policy, China moves to limit risks, reap gains
President Trump's focus overseas may spare China for now, but Beijing still worries that his "America First" rhetoric hasn't softened what it calls U.S. "military adventurism."
Searching for dinosaur secrets in crocodile bones
Until now, estimating how old a dinosaur was when it died has been a fairly simple process: Count up the growth rings in the fossilized bones. But new research into some of dinosaurs' living relatives, like crocodiles, suggests that this method may not always work.
