Mackenzie Bean and Shyla Ruppert were University of Iowa freshmen from different states living in the same residence hall last year when, by happenstance, they discovered a common love of knitting. (Note: A paid subscription may be required.)

Paul McCray, Jr. and David Price, both faculty in the UI Carver College of Medicine, have been awarded the distinction of 2013 Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

The University of Iowa Bicycle Advisory Committee invites UI faculty, staff, and students to join the Winter Warrior Challenge, a fun way to show that a bike commute is possible despite chilly temperatures, Dec. 1-20.

The 2013 University of Iowa Hawkeye Poll captured public opinion among Iowans on a range of timely issues, from health care coverage and gun control to the 2014 U.S. Senate elections and the recent federal government shutdown.

This Thanksgiving, no one will be without a place to gather for good food, conversation, and the opportunity to give thanks. The University of Iowa is hosting a traditional Thanksgiving dinner Thursday, Nov. 28, from 3 to 5 p.m. at Old Brick. Though free and open to the UI community, advance registration is necessary, and volunteers are still invited to help.

Faculty, staff, and students leaving the University of Iowa campus over the Thanksgiving break are urged to unplug and power down to reduce campus energy consumption.

The pattern of repeating stairwells is briefly interrupted by a woman walking down from University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics' Parking Ramp 4 on her way to bring cheer and flowers to a clinic patient.

The UI Department of Dance will present "The Work Between: Collaborative Performance 2013" at 8 p.m. Dec. 5-7 in Space Place Theater. The event features an interdisciplinary performance created through collaboration of student choreographers, musicians, composers, designers, and stage managers.

"Iowa Now" will publish on a lighter schedule the week of Thanksgiving, Monday, Nov. 25 through Friday, Nov. 29.

More than 5,000 first-year students have been using Microsoft Office 365 for email since the beginning of fall semester, and second-year students will make the switch—which means larger mailboxes and a full portfolio of communication and collaboration tools—during winter break.

Poet, playwright, and translator Ariana Reines will present a free reading at 8 p.m. Monday, Dec. 9, in the Frank Conroy Reading Room of the Glenn Schaeffer Library, adjacent to the Dey House.

Death notices for current and retired UI employees. Links to online obituaries provided when available.