The scholarly work of Kevin LaGrandeur proves that the humanities and sciences have more in common than meets the eye.
His book, Androids and Intelligent Networks in Early Modern Literature and Culture: Artificial Slaves, awarded a 2014 Science Fiction and Technoculture Studies Prize honorable mention, was was the product of interdisciplinary research that also led to a number of articles over the past several years. His latest research on medicine and literature, in collaboration with two physicians, explores an alternate theory of how Shakespeare and some of his fellow playwrights may have died. The project is funded by an Institutional Support for Research and Creativity grant from NYIT. Dean Olsen, D.O., an adjunct professor in the College of Osteopathic Medicine, is one of the consulting doctors.
LaGrandeur started out as a pre-med student but later changed course to earn degrees in English and economics. He then sought a career unencumbered by disciplinary restraints sometimes found in higher education. “For someone like me, who has a strong interest in multiple disciplines, especially sciences, philosophy, and English studies, a university like NYIT is a great fit,” he says.