The University of Iowa Public Policy Center recently made changes to its Program Areas and Program leadership. The Center is pleased to announce four new directors.

University of Iowa spin-out business Immortagen finished in third place at the John Pappajohn Iowa Business Plan competition September 24 and received $10,000.

Foundations in Learning, a UI-spinout business based in the UI Research Park, has received a $900,000 federal Small Business Innovation Research grant from the federal government.

Stephen Russell, professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences at the University of Iowa, is principal investigator in a gene therapy trial, in collaboration with Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, that could help treat blindness. He presented his findings this month in Paris.

Callista Gould, who majored in English and medieval studies at the University of Iowa, is an etiquette consultant based in Des Moines who works with clients across the country.

The University of Iowa College of Dentistry's affordable dental care was featured on Good Morning America.

This fall, UI students are discovering the charms of an aged knight-errant, his earthy sidekick, and a cast of colorful characters. Ana Rodríguez-Rodríguez and Denise Filios, professors in Spanish and Portuguese, are co-directing the Obermann–International Programs Humanities Symposium, “Parody, Plagiarism, Patrimony: Don Quixote in the Age of Electronic Reproduction.”

UI researchers teamed up with northwest Iowa physicians to determine the levels of radon, a cancer-causing gas, entering area homes. Iowa leads the country in high indoor concentrations of radon.

"American Idiot," the punk musical featuring the music of Green Day that chronicles the journey of three young men as they search for meaning in a hypocritical world, will open the UI Theatre Mainstage season Oct. 16.

DMD is a genetic disorder that causes progressive muscle degeneration. It is most common in very young boys and first affects the muscles of the hips, pelvic area, thighs, and shoulders. It eventually impacts additional muscles, and by the early teen years, the heart and respiratory muscles become affected.

The University of Iowa celebrated its third annual "We Are Phil" giving appeal for faculty and staff last week—and the push to bolster private support for UI people and programs continues.

An app developed by UI students will let sports fans order food from their seats so they don't miss any of the action while waiting in line at concession stands.