What is Research? (2026) explores various natures, purposes, and roles of research across disciplines, fields, and areas. The event considers frameworks of systematic and creative inquiry, including methods, designs, analyses, discoveries, collaborations, dissemination, ethics, integrity, diversity, media/technologies, and information environments.
The thirteenth gathering delves into research in its many forms, including searching, critically investigating, and re-examining existing knowledge, as well as emerging functions and procedures in machine intelligence and computation. It highlights pluralities of research pathways, examining time-honored approaches and new ways of knowing, precedents, issues, and futures. It considers challenges and possibilities that researchers face in today’s rapidly changing world, and ways to promote ethical, inclusive, and impactful research.
Featured participants include:
• N. Katherine Hayles, Literature, Duke University and English, UCLA • Colin Koopman, Philosophy/Digital Humanities/New Media and Culture, University of Oregon • Vera Keller, History/European Studies, University of Oregon • Daniel Kreiss, Information, Technology, and Public Life, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill • Liska Chan, Landscape Architecture/Environmental Futures, University of Oregon • Mark A. Bedau, Philosophy, Reed College and Complex Systems, Portland State University • Bernd Reiter, Classical and Modern Languages and Literatures, Texas Tech University • Jakki Bailey, Media Studies/Immersive Media Communication, University of Oregon Portland • Tibor Solymosi, Philosophy, Villanova University and Embodied Education, Aarhus University, Denmark • Alexis Merculief, Prevention Science/Counseling Psychology, University of Oregon Portland • Adell Amos, Law/Environmental and Natural Resources Law, University of Oregon • Victor Pickard, Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania
In cooperation with the International Association for Media and Communication Research.
The event celebrates three decades of the Communication and Media Studies Doctoral Program in the School of Journalism and Communication at the University of Oregon.
Registration required. Please see the website for more details.
7:30–9:30 p.m.
In 1926, radium was a miracle cure, Madame Curie an international celebrity, and luminous watches the latest rage—until the girls who painted them began to fall ill with a mysterious disease. Inspired by a true story, Radium Girls traces the efforts of Grace Fryer, a dial painter, as she fights for her day in court. Her chief adversary is her former employer, Arthur Roeder, an idealistic man who cannot bring himself to believe that the same element that shrinks tumors could have anything to do with the terrifying rash of illnesses among his employees. As the case goes on, however, Grace finds herself battling not just with the U.S. Radium Corporation, but with her own family and friends, who fear that her campaign for justice will backfire. Written with warmth and humor, Radium Girls is a fast-moving, highly theatrical ensemble piece for 9 to 10 actors, who play more than 30 parts—friends, co-workers, lovers, relatives, attorneys, scientists, consumer advocates, and myriad interested bystanders. Called a “powerful” and “engrossing” drama by critics, Radium Girls offers a wry, unflinching look at the peculiarly American obsessions with health, wealth, and the commercialization of science. Produced by special arrangement with The Dramatic Publishing Company of Woodstock, Illinois. Originally produced by Playwrights Theatre of New Jersey and developed with a commissioning grant from The Ensemble Studio Theatre/Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Science and Technology Project.
by D. W. Gregory Directed by Willow Jade Norton Zolan
2:00–4:00 p.m.
In 1926, radium was a miracle cure, Madame Curie an international celebrity, and luminous watches the latest rage—until the girls who painted them began to fall ill with a mysterious disease. Inspired by a true story, Radium Girls traces the efforts of Grace Fryer, a dial painter, as she fights for her day in court. Her chief adversary is her former employer, Arthur Roeder, an idealistic man who cannot bring himself to believe that the same element that shrinks tumors could have anything to do with the terrifying rash of illnesses among his employees. As the case goes on, however, Grace finds herself battling not just with the U.S. Radium Corporation, but with her own family and friends, who fear that her campaign for justice will backfire. Written with warmth and humor, Radium Girls is a fast-moving, highly theatrical ensemble piece for 9 to 10 actors, who play more than 30 parts—friends, co-workers, lovers, relatives, attorneys, scientists, consumer advocates, and myriad interested bystanders. Called a “powerful” and “engrossing” drama by critics, Radium Girls offers a wry, unflinching look at the peculiarly American obsessions with health, wealth, and the commercialization of science. Produced by special arrangement with The Dramatic Publishing Company of Woodstock, Illinois. Originally produced by Playwrights Theatre of New Jersey and developed with a commissioning grant from The Ensemble Studio Theatre/Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Science and Technology Project.
by D. W. Gregory Directed by Willow Jade Norton Zolan
1:00–3:30 p.m.
Foodways in early East Asia reflect cultural identity, technological innovation, and community practices. Prehistoric societies across the region diversified their diets with wild resources, experimented with early farming, and developed distinctive cooking and serving traditions. This session highlights research on food procurement, preparation, and consumption in Neolithic China and Japan, alongside comparisons with food culture resilience in Oregon.
The symposium is open to the public, and light refreshment will be provided.
Hosted by:
Prof. Gyoung-Ah Lee (Anthropology, University of Oregon)
Presented by:
Prof. Anne Underhill (Anthropology, Yale University)
Prof. Xuexiang Chen (Archaeology, Shandong University)
Prof. Hiroki Obata (Archaeology, Kumamoto University)
Prof. Katelyn McDonough (Anthropology, University of Oregon)
View or Download the Symposium Brochure Here
Event sponsors:
Admiral David E. Jeremiah and Mrs. Connie Jeremiah Lecture Series, Yoko McClain Lecture Series in Japanese Studies, Center for Asian and Pacific Studies, Department of Anthropology, East Asian Languages and Literatures, Food Studies Program, and Oregon Humanities Center’s Endowment for Public Outreach in the Arts, Sciences, and Humanities.
3:30–5:00 p.m.
Join the Department of History and Kathy Stuart, Professor of History at the University of California, Davis, for a talk: “If the child dies, it will cost my life too, that cannot be avoided.” Suicide by Proxy, Social Discipline and the Psyche in Early Modern Germany.
Suicide by proxy was a novel crime that emerged in late sixteenth-century Germany: suicidal people committed capital crimes with the explicit goal of “earning” their executions, as a short-cut to their salvation. By dying repentantly at the hands of the state, perpetrators hoped to escape eternal damnation that befell direct suicides. To that end they typically murdered a young child, as a religious sacrifice. Suicide by proxy had a cross-confessional appeal and was astonishingly frequent, leading to high numbers of executions in numerous Central European territories. Kathy Stuart embeds this shocking practice in its religious and political context to show how it emerged as the psychological consequence of social disciplining techniques deployed by the early modern state.
Stuart is Professor of History at the University of California, Davis. She researches the history of criminal justice, marginality and gender in early modern Germany. Her first book, Defiled Trades and Social Outcasts: Honor and Ritual Pollution in Early Modern Germany (Cambridge UP, 2000), received the biennial Hans Rosenberg Book Prize. Her second book, Suicide by Proxy in Early Modern Germany: Crime, Sin and Salvation (Palgrave Macmillan, 2023) was awarded the Natalie Zemon Davis Book Prize in 2024. She collaborated with Austrian filmmakers Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala on their feature film Des Teufel’s Bad (The Devil’s Bath), awarded a Silver Bear at the 2024 Berlin International Film Festival. The film’s female protagonist is a composite of two historical women child murderers featured in Suicide by Proxy.
Free and open to the public.
1:00 p.m.
Please join us Wednesday afternoons for a free cup of coffee, pastries, and conversation with your history department community! We’re excited to continue this tradition for our history undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, and staff. We hope to see you there!
3:30–4:30 p.m.
The Northwest Native American Language Resource Center's Community Project Planning and Development (CPPD) workshops are designed to help guide you through the process of creating a community-based project: from coming up with the idea, to building a solid organizational and logistical foundation, and all of the other necessary steps to get your project proposal completed. Overall, there are 15 CPPD workshops in this series.
Each workshop also has an associated next-day drop-in assistance hour. This workshop series is meant to take participants with little to no experience in community project planning and development and help them complete their first project proposal. While we are focused on assisting with project planning and development of Alaskan Native/Native American Language projects, much of the content that you will be learning in these workshops is readily transferrable to other types of projects.
Registrants will have access to all workshops in this April offering. Attendance at all workshops in the offering is recommended but not required.
All instruction is provided online and instructors will join online. Participants will join remotely via zoom (please see technology section below.)
Workshops in this Offering
The CPPD workshops are offered in smaller, five workshop offerings. The first five workshops were offered in November and December of 2025. The workshops that are available in the April offering are:
Workshop 6: Identifying Long-Range Goals
- Topic: Supports facilitation of community discussions to identify vision-aligned, long-term goals that drive project outcomes.
- Date: 4/1
- Drop-In Assistance: 4/2
Workshop 7: Defining Barriers to Long-Range Goals
- Topic: Identifies internal and external barriers, explores strategies to surface challenges, and begin problem-solving approaches.
- Date: 4/8
- Drop-In Assistance: 4/9
Workshop 8: Creating Project Goals & Objectives
- Topic: Translates community vision into specific, measurable project goals and objectives using clear, structured frameworks.
- Date: 4/15
- Drop-In Assistance: 4/16
Workshop 9: Outcomes, Outputs, & Activities
- Topic: Distinguishes outcomes, outputs, and activities, aligns them within a project framework/logic model.
- Date: 4/22
- Drop-In Assistance: 4/23
Workshop 10: Building a Project Work Plan
- Topic: Hands-on strategies to create a work plan with timelines, milestones, responsibilities, and deliverables.
- Date: 4/29
- Drop-In Assistance: 4/30
Technology
The CPPD workshops will be held via Zoom and will use Canvas, a course management system, for materials and activities. Participants must have an email address. It will be best to join on a computer that has a stable internet connection, a webcam, and headphones (depending on your work environment). Using a computer rather than a mobile device will improve your experience - you will be able to better interact with others, participate in hands-on activities, and see presented materials.
3:30–4:30 p.m.
The NW-NALRC's Community Project Planning and Development (CPPD) workshops are designed to help guide you through the process of creating a community-based project: from coming up with the idea, to building a solid organizational and logistical foundation, and all of the other necessary steps to get your project proposal completed. Overall, there are 15 CPPD workshops in this series.
Each workshop also has an associated Next-Day Drop-In Assistance Hour. This workshop series is meant to take participants with little to no experience in Community Project Planning and Development and help them complete their first project proposal. While we are focused on assisting with project planning and development of Alaskan Native / Native American Language projects, much of the content that you will be learning in these workshops is readily transferrable to other types of projects.
Registrants will have access to all workshops in this April 2026 offering. Attendance at all workshops in the offering is recommended but not required.
The CPPD Workshops are offered in smaller, five workshop offerings. The first five workshops were offered in November and December of 2025. The workshops that are available in the April 2026 offering are:
Workshop 6: Identifying Long-Range Goals
- Topic: Supports facilitation of community discussions to identify vision-aligned, long-term goals that drive project outcomes.
- Date: 4/1
- Drop-In Assistance: 4/2
Workshop 7: Defining Barriers to Long-Range Goals
- Topic: Identifies internal and external barriers, explores strategies to surface challenges, and begin problem-solving approaches.
- Date: 4/8
- Drop-In Assistance: 4/9
Workshop 8: Creating Project Goals & Objectives
- Topic: Translates community vision into specific, measurable project goals and objectives using clear, structured frameworks.
- Date: 4/15
- Drop-In Assistance: 4/16
Workshop 9: Outcomes, Outputs, & Activities
- Topic: Distinguishes outcomes, outputs, and activities, aligns them within a project framework/logic model.
- Date: 4/22
- Drop-In Assistance: 4/23
Workshop 10: Building a Project Work Plan
- Topic: Hands-on strategies to create a work plan with timelines, milestones, responsibilities, and deliverables.
- Date: 4/29
- Drop-In Assistance: 4/30
Technology
The CPPD workshops will be held via Zoom and will use Canvas, a course management system, for materials and activities. Participants must have an email address. It will be best to join on a computer that has a stable internet connection, a webcam, and headphones (depending on your work environment). Using a computer rather than a mobile device will improve your experience - you will be able to better interact with others, participate in hands-on activities, and see presented materials.
7:00 p.m.
The Department of History invites you to a screening of The Devil’s Bath (2024) and talk with Kathy Stuart, Professor of History at the University of California, Davis.
Synopsis: Upper Austria in the year 1750: a fishpond reflects the grey sky. A deep, dark forest swallows the sunlight. On a hilltop, an executed woman has been displayed for all to see. As evidence. As a warning. As an omen? Agnes, deeply religious and highly sensitive, looks at the dead woman with pity. But also with longing, because she feels like a stranger in the world of her husband Wolf. It is an emotionally cold world consisting of work, chores and expectations. Agnes withdraws more and more into herself. Her inner prison becomes ever more oppressive, her melancholy more overwhelming. Soon her only way out seems to be a shocking act of violence. Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala have created a profound and disturbing psychogramm of a woman, played with flesh and bone, sinew and soul by Anja Plaschg, who also composed the music as Soap&Skin. The Devil’s Bath gives a voice to the invisible and unheard women of the rural past; it portrays the harshness of their daily lives defined by religious dogma and taboos which still resonate down the ages. A film based on historical court records about a shocking, hitherto unexplored chapter of European history
Stuart is Professor of History at the University of California, Davis. She researches the history of criminal justice, marginality and gender in early modern Germany. Her first book, Defiled Trades and Social Outcasts: Honor and Ritual Pollution in Early Modern Germany (Cambridge UP, 2000), received the biennial Hans Rosenberg Book Prize. Her second book, Suicide by Proxy in Early Modern Germany: Crime, Sin and Salvation (Palgrave Macmillan, 2023) was awarded the Natalie Zemon Davis Book Prize in 2024. She collaborated with Austrian filmmakers Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala on their feature film Des Teufel’s Bad (The Devil’s Bath), awarded a Silver Bear at the 2024 Berlin International Film Festival. The film’s female protagonist is a composite of two historical women child murderers featured in Suicide by Proxy.
Free and open to the public.
Nomad undergraduate journal authors will briefly present their work.
Refreshments will be served.
3:30–5:30 a.m.
Nomad undergraduate journal authors will briefly present their work.
Refreshments will be served.