Congratulations to Laura E. Bier, assistant professor in the School of History, Technology, and Society, who has been selected as a Fulbright Scholar for 2012-2013.

Bier's third Fulbright, this grant will support her in carrying out nine months of research in Egypt for her second book, tentatively entitled: "Cultures of Consumption: Commodification, Politics and Everyday Life in Modern Egypt, 1945-1991."  The project examines the relationship between commodity cultures, changing patterns of consumption, and modern advertising in the making of Egypt (and Egyptians) from the period following World War II to the era of neo-liberal economic reform. The book will focus on three types of commodities—processed foods, household goods, and toiletries. One of the case studies that Bier will use is Coca-Cola, which was first available in Egypt after World War II as a luxury good and then became common in urban life and culture until 1966 when the country joined the Arab boycott.

Sponsored by the U.S. government, the Fulbright Scholar Program is an international exchange that supports faculty and scholars in lectures and research in a wide variety of academic and professional fields.

Related Links 

• Laura E. Bier Bio
• Fulbright Scholar Program