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May 2008 | Home
U-M Heritage
The first co-ed
In 1866, when U-M regents argued that women were not persons in the eyes of the law, Alice Boise started sneaking into class — and outperforming the men.
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Health
Heart attacks: women get worse treatment
The gender gap is alive and unwell in heart disease, with women differing from men on everything from symptoms to treatment in both heart attack and severe chest pain.
Talking about words
Eating words
From 'menu' to 'barista' to 'evoo,' cooking and foods provide one of the quickest way for English to heap new words onto its plate.
Talking about movies
The future of movies...
…is here. The digital age has changed the way movies are filmed and distributed. It's made new content possible. And it's made at least some actors obsolete.
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On Campus
Video: Once in a lifetime
May 19, 2008
Traditionally, spring commencement takes place in the Big House. But this year, Michigan Stadium is under construction, so U-M needed an alternate venue for graduation.
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The Class of '08 convinced university officials to hold commencement in a beautiful and thoroughly appropriate place: the Diag. It was the first time in U-M's 191-year history that the Diag hosted graduation.
Getting the heart of campus ready took some doing—not to mention 32,000 folding chairs, 30 tractor-trailers of gear, hundreds of workers, and a "floor" covering 165,000 square feet.
At the ceremony, President Mary Sue Coleman welcomed the attendees and presented an honorary degree to alum and keynote speaker Bob Woodruff, a correspondent for ABC News. Other speakers included graduating senior Andres Ramos, who gave remarks on behalf of the graduates.
Related: Read stories, watch video of speakers and ceremony, and see slideshow of photos from the big day.