Nita Farahany, a recently arrived faculty member at Duke University, combines expertise at the intersection of law, biosciences and philosophy.  With appointments in Duke Law and the Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy, she exemplifies how the newest members of Duke's academic team are enhancing the university's academic strengths while pursuing new initiatives.

Other new faculty members this year are advancing Duke's global agenda, such Gustavo Furtado and Lamonte Aidoo, two young scholars on Brazil. Still others, such as Jianfeng Lu in math, are enhancing traditional -- and still vitally important -- academic departments.

Each of Duke's new faculty member has a story to tell, from a rise from poverty to a world journey from Asia or South America. Duke Today introduces you to some of them here in its annual series of new faculty profiles. The stories are illustrative rather than comprehensive, and you'll see new ones added as the year progresses: