April 24, 2003

Carolina in the News

Current National Coverage

Here is a sampling of links and notes about Carolina 
people and programs cited recently in the media:

AIDS Researcher Ho, Others Set to Begin to Tackle SARS
The Wall Street Journal
SARS is the biggest news in the world of virology since AIDS, and some of the 
world's leading scientists are jumping into the pursuit of a weapon to fight it. ... 
Ralph S. Baric, an expert on animal coronaviruses at the University of North 
Carolina, is one of dozens of researchers who have moved quickly to work on 
SARS.
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB105114293579717000,00.html?mod=sp%2Dsarsholdingbreath%5F1
(Note: The Wall Street Journal requires a subscription to access articles.)

A 'cinematic smear' of school life
USA Today
Hollywood portrayals of inner-city schools are almost uniformly violent and 
bleak, with even inspirational films giving moviegoers a skewed view of minority 
students, their lives and families, education researchers say. ... "They're a cinematic 
smear of entire groups of working-class people," says James Trier, an assistant 
professor of education at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.
http://www.usatoday.com/life/2003-04-23-education-movies_x.htm

State and Local Coverage

Frontier days (Editorial)
News and Observer
Genome sciences are what's known in the research world as cutting-edge. And 
two of the world's sharpest edges are in the Triangle, celebrated this week with 
the christening of genomic research lab buildings at Duke University and the 
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. ... Comments by Terry Magnuson, 
who heads the genome program at UNC-Chapel Hill, are illustrative: "What I'm 
finding so exciting is, I'm interacting with chemistry, biology, physics, computer 
science as well as the cancer center. We're thinking in a whole new dimension. 
If you really want to be competitive, you're collaborating with people in different
disciplines."
http://newsobserver.com/editorials/story/2484031p-2309356c.html

Officials dedicate research building
The Daily Tar Heel 
Faculty, staff, administrators and local political leaders gathered Wednesday to 
dedicate UNC's new Biomolecular Research Building, with most addressing the
myriad possibilities the building makes available at UNC.
http://www.dailytarheel.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2003/04/24/3ea7d8d62de96

(Other coverage of this ceremony included WRAL-TV (CBS-Raleigh) and an
expected story later on WUNC-FM.)

Bridge has Taylor again going to Carolina 
News and Observer
Chapel Hill has always enjoyed claiming James Taylor. Come Saturday, that claim 
will be set in concrete with the dedication of the James Taylor Bridge, near the house 
where Taylor grew up. ... 
http://www.newsobserver.com/front/story/2484289p-2309406c.html

Shot at Silent Sam results in a big spam uproar 
Greensboro News & Record
There is a lot of noise being made at UNC-Chapel Hill over a statue known as 
Silent Sam.
http://www.news-record.com/news/education/uncspam24rk.htm

Healthy moves
News and Observer
And you thought we were worried about fat before. Well, look out -- it's no longer 
just an unwanted jiggle. ... Last week the UNC School of Public Health announced
results of a study showing that from 1980 to 2000 when the number of overweight 
teens shot up, the amount of exercise they were getting may have been dropping 
dramatically ... "We're just throwing in pennies -- giving it lip service," said Barry
Popkin, a nutrition professor at the UNC School of Public Health. ... Doctors 
routinely see type 2 -- what used to be called "adult-onset" -- diabetes in children, 
said Alice Ammerman, an associate professor of nutrition for UNC Schools of 
Public Health and Medicine. ... "Obesity always seemed like something you 
could take care of tomorrow," said Dr. Steven Zeisel of UNC. 
http://www.news-observer.com/front/triangle.com/story/2484744p-2309289c.html

A Check Up on The Last Kinston Plant Burn Victim
WTVD-TV (ABC, Raleigh)
There's only one victim of the Kinston plant explosion left at UNC Hospitals Jaycee 
Burn Center, and Jim Edwards' recovery has been miraculous. ... But the biggest
miracle of all, according to Red Edwards, is that Jim made it to UNC Hospitals. "I 
don't think he could've been in a better place. The Jaycee Burn Center has been 
wonderful in equipment, in knowledge, in every way."
http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/news/042303_NW_kinstonburnvictim.html

Know your supplements 
News and Observer
Most customers come to Great Earth Vitamins stores in Cary and Durham looking 
for a solution to achy joints, sluggishness or weight gain. ... Recent studies show 
certain supplements deliver a much lower concentration than promised, said Steven
Zeisel, chairman of the nutrition department at UNC-Chapel Hill. 
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2484111p-2309284c.html

Heed the warnings about mercury (Commentary)
News and Observer
If pregnancy is a possibility or you have young children in the house, you need to be 
aware of the current recommendations concerning mercury in fish. 
http://newsobserver.com/features/story/2484265p-2309268c.html
(Note: Suzanne Havala Hobbs is an adjunct assistant professor in the School 
of Public Health.)

Issues and Trends Affecting Carolina

University Free Speech Bolstered 
The Washington Post
A civil liberties group has filed a lawsuit challenging the speech code at Pennsylvania's 
Shippensburg University, the first move in what the group says will be an all-out assault 
on speech codes at public universities nationwide.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A27616-2003Apr23.html

Extra aid for athletes 
News and Observer
The NCAA today is expected to approve a new way of giving of money to student-
athletes without compromising their eligibility -- though a spokesman insisted that it 
should not be construed as a pay-for-play program. 
http://newsobserver.com/sports/college/story/2484175p-2309318c.html 

Senate haste on budget ducks reality, critics say 
News and Observer
Senate leaders are preparing to roll out a $15 billion state budget plan as early as next 
week, a move critics say is designed to sidestep the need to plug a revenue hole that 
could top $300 million. 
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2484120p-2309386c.html

Tug of war for mental hospital 
News and Observer
The location of a new state mental hospital has become the subject of a three-way tug 
involving Wake, Granville and Chatham county legislators who all want the $100 million 
facility in their counties. ... Officials at both universities have signed a memorandum of 
agreement, indicating that UNC would take the lead role in programs at a combined 
hospital, but two facilities would mean a continuation of separate and autonomous 
programs.
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/nc/story/2484209p-2309348c.html

Moeser seeks 'middle ground' 
News and Observer
UNC Chancellor James Moeser said Tuesday he sees room for compromise on 
widening Columbia Street. 
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/triangle/story/2484316p-2309327c.html
(Note: This article originally appeared in The Chapel Hill News.)

Note: If you have any questions about Carolina in the News, 
please call Cathleen Keyser or Mike McFarland at News Services, 
(919) 962-2091 or news@unc.edu or mike_mcfarland@unc.edu