April 26, 2007

Carolina in the News

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

National Coverage

Don’t Scrap Top 10% Plans
Inside Higher Ed
All Texas parents keep a watchful eye on their progeny’s performance in high school, knowing that a “top 10 percent” class rank guarantees admission to the state college of their choice. ...Institutions such as the University of Virginia or the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill struggle to recruit rural high school graduates and first generation students.

Could doctors' drug industry ties affect your care
ABC News
From free pens to all-expenses-paid vacations, pharmaceutical companies appear to be pulling out all the stops to get their branding on doctors. ..."There are no 'free lunches,' or trips or widgets," said (Nortin) Hadler, who is a professor of medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and author of "The Last Well Person."

Towering Mystery Fossil Was a 'Shroom With a View
National Geographic News
At a time when the tallest trees stood just a few feet high, giant "mushrooms" towered over the landscape. ...Patricia Gensel is a professor of paleobotany at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who was not involved in the new study.

Close the Pay Gap between Men And Women
HispanicBusiness.com
More than 35 years have passed since women wore pay gap buttons saying "59 cents." Funny how inflation works. We earn more now but yet women still earn only 77 cents for every dollar a man earns. ...When there are more women top managers, working women's salaries go up, according to a recent study by Philip N. Cohen, a sociologist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Regional Coverage

Democrats ready for debate in South Carolina
The Chicago Tribune
In an early debut of the debates that will help shape the crowded contest for the White House, all eight declared Democratic presidential candidates will climb onto the stage in a college auditorium Thursday to face questions before a national television audience. ..."The big issue is still the war in Iraq," said Ferrel Guillory, director of the Program on Southern Politics, Media and Public Life at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Stores' Private Brands Gain Ground
The Tampa Tribune
Grocery retailers looking to boost profits and increase market share are using their own store brands as ammunition in the war for shopper dollars. ..."By offering private label, they can build profit margin and market share," said J.B. Steenkamp, a marketing professor at the University of North Carolina and co-author of "Private Label Strategy."

Digital billboards are not distractions to drivers (Question-answer)
The Rapid City Journal (Iowa)
Do flashing digital billboards pose a safety hazard to motorists, especially at night? And if not, why not? ...The AAA Foundation for Traffic safety has done extensive research on driver distraction. A major study based on crash data and prepared by researchers at the University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center, said items such as CB radios, billboards, and temperature controls are not significant distractions in real world traffic accidents.

Funding basics — ARC crucial to infrastructure, economy Bluefield
Daily Telegraph (W.Va.)
Few areas of the nation have to continue to fight for clean drinking water and simple sewer systems, but in Appalachia it can be an unfortunate part of life. ...In infrastructure projects, ARC grants may be crucial in coming years. In a release promoting the need for more federal funding, Rahall cited an analysis completed by the University of North Carolina Environmental Financing Center, which reported the counties in the ARC region require estimated investments of $11.4 billion to meet current drinking water needs and $14.3 billion for wastewater needs — much more than is currently available from combined state and federal funding programs.

State and Local Coverage

More Carolina North details offered
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Citizens can continue to shape the university's plans for Carolina North at two meetings this afternoon. UNC-Chapel Hill will hold its second pair of community forums on three potential design scenarios for the research campus.
UNC Media Advisory: http://www.unc.edu/news/media/2007/cnorthadvisory042507.html

UNC researcher lands $300K award
The Triangle Business Journal
An assistant chemistry professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has landed a $300,000 award to support his study of substance called chromatin.
UNC People brief: http://www.unc.edu/news/briefs/2007/042507.html

Marine to speak at UNC ceremony
The Chapel Hill Herald
Capt. Rye Barcott, who recently completed five years of service on active duty in the Marine Corps based in Camp Lejeune, will deliver the 2007 UNC School of Public Health commencement address on May 12.

N.C. lets mentally ill avoid gun list
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Thousands of people involuntarily committed to psychiatric institutions by North Carolina courts aren't in a national database aimed at preventing gun sales to people with dangerous mental illnesses. ...Mark Botts, an expert on mental health records and confidentiality at the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Government, said legislators already have written several exemptions into the law, including the DMV measure.

Drinks that sound like drugs
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Tim McCullen drinks his morning pick-me-up at 3 p.m. Instead of black coffee, McCullen, who tends bar at The Goat in Raleigh, downs a couple of effect brand energy drinks when he reports for a shift that doesn't end till the wee hours. ..."We don't really have any sense of how it affects humans," said Barry Popkin, a nutrition professor and director of the interdisciplinary obesity program at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Chatham districts may shift
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Last summer, the three outgoing Chatham County commissioners voted to redraw the county's district lines shortly after two lost their primary bids and the other announced his retirement. ...But proving the populations are again unequal is going to be tough, said Bob Joyce, with the School of Government at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Colleges Review Dorm Safety After Shootings
WNCN-TV (NBC, Raleigh)
The Virginia Tech gunman's first victims were in a dorm room. ... The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is one of those schools looking at the Virginia Tech situation.

Universes coming to Chapel Hill this weekend
WCHL-AM (Chapel Hill)
One part Shakespeare, one part Allen Ginsburg, and one part Tupac Shakur. That’s how artistic director Steve Sapp describes his poetry performance troupe called “Universes,” coming to Chapel Hill for the first time this weekend.
UNC Event brief: http://www.unc.edu/news/briefs/2007/042307.html

Produced by News Services, Carolina in the News is an e-mail sampling of current news media coverage about Carolina people and programs, as well as issues and trends that affect the university. Stories usually will be online and available free for a limited time - often one to two weeks. Expiration dates before stories move to archives vary by media outlet. Some outlets require free user registration or a subscription.

Carolina in the News is also posted daily to the News Services Web page, http://www.unc.edu/news/clips/index.shtml.

Please share any questions, comments or suggestions at news@unc.edu.