Pepperdine Magazine

Seaver College Students Follow Charles Darwin’s Footsteps in the Galapagos Islands By Audra Quinn The most famous visitor to the Galapagos Islands was undoubtedly the young Charles Darwin, who arrived in 1835 on board HMS Beagle. There he found a remarkable population of endemic species—species unique to the region and found nowhere else in the world. They [...]

James Prieger thinks economics for the growing telecommunications industry By Sarah Fisher As the global economic crisis erupted last year, James Prieger witnessed firsthand the continued growth of one of the few industries to defy the downturn: telecommunications. The School of Public Policy professor, who was working in Washington, D.C., as a senior economist for the Federal [...]

Lounging in the Southern California sun, soaking up the rays for as many as 14 hours a day: life sounds pretty nice for the California Tree Frog. But frogs have only a very thin layer of skin, so why—and how—are they able to absorb such high levels of UV rays without accruing skin damage? That [...]

Prosecutor Alan Jackson Brings Phil Spector to Justice with a Long-Awaited Verdict By Emily DiFrisco Deputy district attorney Alan Jackson (JD ’94) was on the case from the beginning. The first trial began in March 2007 in Los Angeles, California, and extended over seven months. Throughout the trial, the prosecution showed that Spector had a three decades-long [...]

Melissa Umbro knows that the best way to understand someone is to walk a mile in their shoes. Through her trip to Indonesia, she'll learn what it's like to be Muslim, and what it's like to be a Fulbright award winner.

Literary snobs beware: James W. Thomas, has a bone to pick with anyone claiming that J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series is not "real" literature. Since discovering the wizarding stories five years ago, the Seaver College professor of English has pioneered a class dedicated to exploring the books, and in January 2009, he published a guide for professors and fans alike, Repotting Harry Potter: A Professor's Book-by-Book Guide for the Serious Re-Reader.