SSRC Update - July 2012

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Rachel Tanur Memorial Prize Winners Announced

The Rachel Tanur Memorial Prize for Visual Sociology has announced the winners of the 2012 competition. The prize recognizes students in the social sciences who incorporate visual analysis in their work. It is named for Rachel Dorothy Tanur (1958–2002), an urban planner and lawyer who cared deeply about people and their lives and was an acute observer of living conditions and human relationships. The prizes will be awarded at the Second ISA Forum of Sociology: Social Justice and Democratization, to be held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in August 2012. The winning entries examine Bedik women in Senegal, a butcher at work in the American Midwest, and an interstate‐highway underpass in Austin, Texas.

The International Dissertation Research Fellowship (IDRF) program has posted a series of workshop videos on academic publishing, featuring IDRF Book Fellows in conversation with NYU Press, editors, and published scholars. Topics include the review process, copublication, and electronic editions.

Ronit Ricci (IDRF 2002) received the American Academy of Religion's Best First Book in the History of Religions Award for Islam Translated, the product of her 2009 IDRF Book Fellowship.

Paul Froese is recognized by Daniel Chirot as an influential New Voice in the sociology of religion for his growing body of work, including the powerful books The Plot to Kill God and America’s Four Gods (with Christopher Bader).

Measure of America reports on the widespread local impact of their report A Portrait of Marin, which continues to facilitate interaction between citizens, the public sector, and the private sector in the deliberation of community issues.

Macabe Keliher brings us the story behind the controversial video “Beyond Obama” in a Possible Futures interview: “A Vision and a Program for the American Left: A Conversation with Roberto Mangabeira Unger on the Situation, the Task, and the Remaking of the Democratic Party.”

The Immanent Frame is featuring a new series on sexual abuse and the Catholic Church, which opened with an essay by editor‐at‐large Kathryn Lofton, “Sex Abuse and the Study of Religion.”

In recent reviews of SSRC books, Richard Lachmann recommends the initial three volumes in the Possible Futures series (SSRC/NYU Press), edited by president Craig Calhoun, as "Smart Books about Stupid (and Greedy) People,” and Contemporary Sociology recommends The Risks of Prescription Drugs (SSRC/Columbia University Press) as a "shattering, fact‐filled feuilleton."

Deadlines are fast approaching for a number of SSRC grant and fellowship competitions, including Grants for Collaborative Research on Environment and Health in China (August 28), the Abe Fellowship (September 1) and Abe Fellowship for Journalists (September 15), and the DPDF Faculty Field Competition (October 3).

IN MEMORIAM
With great sadness, the Council marks the passing of Paul Price, editorial and communications director, whose knowledge, guidance, and friendship have been central to our mission and our community since 1999.
We miss you, Paul.