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Aug. 7, 2006Carolina in the News
Here is a sampling of links and notes about Carolina
people and programs cited recently in the media:International Coverage
Library database inventor dies at 92
United Press International
U.S. library innovator Fred Kilgour has died at the University of North Carolina Medical Center in Chapel Hill at age 92. ... In 1967 Kilgour founded a library center at Ohio State University with an idea to take reference resources out of their traditional brick-and-mortar housing and make them accessible to anyone in Ohio, the Times said.National Coverage
In the Quest for Security, Convertibles Have a Role
The New York Times
Investing in a volatile market, like the current one, resembles a bout with a runaway treadmill at the gym — a lot of work, taking you nowhere, interrupted by occasional bursts of panic. ... “Convertibles can help you ride out periods of volatility,” said Anil Shivdasani, a finance professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
John Edwards calls for withdrawal of some troops from Iraq
The Associated Press (National)
Former vice presidential candidate John Edwards, who is considering another run for the Democratic nomination for president, said Saturday the United States should start pulling troops out of Iraq immediately. ... The former trial lawyer now leads the Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity at the University of North Carolina Law School, and has traveled the country speaking out against poverty.
Potential Link Between Shampoo and Brain Development
Ivanhoe Newswire
An ingredient commonly found in shampoo interferes with normal brain development in baby mice when applied to the skin of pregnant mice, according to a new study from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Note: Ivanhoe has a syndicated television series and its reports are broadcast in 250 markets reaching 80 million U.S. households.
UNC news release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/aug06/zeiselDEA080306.htmLBJ's Waning and Waxing Reputation
The Chronicle of Higher Education
The presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson marked a sharp turn in the history of presidential scholarship. ... For example, in one case, Caro said Johnson's failure to support FDR vocally was unprincipled; Dallek quoted the University of North Carolina historian William Leuchtenberg as saying it wasn't unprincipled, and, Dallek seemed to think, that was that.
Political Scientists' Renewed Interest in the Workings of Power
The Chronicle of Higher Education
This coming Labor Day weekend, at the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association in Philadelphia, some fraction of the 7,000 or so political scientists in attendance will respond to the conference theme of "Power Reconsidered." ... . Political scientists including Robert Erikson, of Columbia University, and James Stimson, of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and sociologists including Paul Burstein, of the University of Washington, and Jeff Manza, of Northwestern University, demonstrate that the center of national public opinion strongly influences the content of national public policy in the United States.
Fred Kilgour founded online library
The Los Angeles Times
When the information superhighway was in the design stages, librarian and educator Fred Kilgour's dream was to take reference resources out of their traditional brick and mortar housing and make them more accessible. ... Kilgour died July 31 of a brain hemorrhage at the University of North Carolina Medical Center in Chapel Hill, according to OCLC spokesman Bob Murphy.
Related link: http://chronicle.com/weekly/v52/i49/49a02902.htmState & Local Coverage
UNC gets grant to help disabled students in class
The Associated Press (N.C.)
The University of North Carolina has been awarded a $2.5 million federal grant to study ways to better serve disabled children in standard classrooms. The five-year grant from the U.S. Department of Education will establish a National Center on High Quality Personnel in Inclusive Early Childhood Settings, the university announced Thursday.
UNC news release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/aug06/fpggrant080306.htmUNC celebrates equipment gift
The Chapel Hill Herald
The Division of Radiologic Sciences recently held a ribbon-cutting reception at the teaching laboratory of the UNC School of Medicine's Burnett-Womack Building, to celebrate a recent donation of instructional medical equipment. Siemens Medical Solutions gave the equipment, valued at $290,000, to help train medical imaging professionals in diagnosing and assessing disease and injury, officials said.
UNC news brief: http://www.unc.edu/news/briefs/2006/080206.htmUNC student leader to focus on campus safety
The Chapel Hill Herald
With nearly a third of his term behind him, UNC Student Body President James Allred said he hopes to start addressing off-campus elements of what he called one of his major goals: improving student safety. "This is something that we've viewed as a student issue," Allred said. "But it's a student issue with benefits that extend far beyond the student population."
Photographers' works on display
The Chapel Hill Herald
Works by internationally known North Carolina photographers now are on display in the Robert B. House Undergraduate Library at UNC Chapel Hill. Ann Stewart, a Chapel Hill art consultant who represents the artists, donated the photos recently to the UNC library. She is the granddaughter of House, chancellor of the university from 1945 to 1957, for whom the library is named.
UNC news release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/aug06/libraryphotos080306.htmVariety of surplus items for sale at UNC warehouse
The Chapel Hill Herald
One man's trash is another man's treasure. That was the gist of Leroy Alston's description of the UNC Surplus Property Warehouse, where he has worked as a temporary employee for the past three years.
Healthy rewards for all (Letter to the editor)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Regarding the Aug. 1 Point of View article "Perks for profits or better care?" I'd like to point out some facts about UNC Health Care's continued commitment to the people of North Carolina. We are providing more free and discounted care now than ever. William L. Roper, MD, MPH, CEO, UNC Health Care System
LightBox
"The State of Things," WUNC-FM
A group of teenaged girls was struggling to succeed in the Kibera slums of Nairobi, Kenya until the founders of the Binti Pamoja Center helped them view their lives through the lens of a camera. The girls' self-reflective photos helped them discuss their lives and grow into community leaders.Their stories and their photos are now the subject of a new book, LightBox (Carolina for Kibera/2006).
UNC news release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/jun06/lightbox062706.htmRaleigh is stage as U.S. prosecutes detainee abuse
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Raleigh's federal courthouse will become the stage today for a trial unlike any seen there before. ... "This [case] is one that potentially reaches into the decision-makers' offices in Washington," said Richard E. Myers II, a former federal prosecutor who is now an assistant professor at UNC's law school.
Experts: Major, instant changes in Cuba unlikely
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
If Fidel Castro dies as he recuperates from surgery and his brother becomes the leader of Cuba, don't expect immediate, sweeping changes in the country, local experts on Cuba say. ... UNC history professor Louis Perez, who also studies Cuba, said he doesn't think the Cuban government would have created the expectation that Fidel Castro would recover if it did not think he would.
Principals told to fix schools fast, or quit
The Charlotte Observer
Judge Howard Manning Jr. hit principals of low-scoring high schools with a blunt, face-to-face message Friday: If you can't fix your school fast, you should resign. ... He spoke at a principal training session at the UNC Center for School Leadership Development.
Related link: http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/news/local/15207419.htmDecker case is tricky, unclear
The Charlotte Observer
As he pleaded guilty to a federal conspiracy charge, former state Rep. Michael Decker painted his arrangement with an unidentified Democrat as a simple transaction: If Jim Black gets Decker's backing for House speaker, Decker gets $50,000. ... The more explicit the deal, the easier it is to prosecute, said Richard Myers, a former federal prosecutor who now teaches law at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
There's money in the land, but there's more in liquid
The Charlotte Observer
Canadian businessman Joe Liburdi and his brother Dominic bought land in Huntersville five years ago, intending to use it for real-estate development. ... Philip Singer, director of the UNC Drinking Water Research Center, said there's no health difference between bottled and tap water.
He crusades for safe water supply
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
In the thick of a sticky summer, we are all drawn to the one thing guaranteed to cool. ... Dan Okun, a retired environmental engineer and professor emeritus at UNC-Chapel Hill. Okun has spent his life fighting to protect communities' water resources.
Should papers change your way with words?
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
A recent News & Observer story from Robeson County brought up an interesting question about journalistic practice: Should the newspaper clean up the bad grammar of the people it quotes? ... Jan Johnson Yopp, senior associate dean at the UNC Journalism School, said students there are taught never to alter direct quotes and to avoid using vernacular. The exception would be feature stories where colorful phrasing conveys a flavor important to the story.
2 towns will gain added zoning clout
The Charlotte Observer
A recently passed state law, effective in six months, will give eastern Union towns Marshville and Wingate the power to make zoning decisions in the area one mile outside each town's limits. ... And a majority of N.C. municipalities have ETJ: a 2005 survey by the Institute of Government at UNC Chapel Hill found 62 percent of state cities and towns have the rule.
County’s Hispanic population exploding
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
Durham County's Hispanic population grew by more than 56 percent in the five years since the last census, according to estimates released Friday. ... "I think the trend is continuing," said Jim Johnson, a business demographics professor at UNC who co-authored a study of the Hispanic population's impact on the state's economy. "I don't think it's slowing down."
Note: No link available.Expert advice costly
The Chapel Hill News
The town has paid about $1 million each of the last two years to outside consulting firms for legal advice, architectural design and other professional services. ... Frayda Bluestein, a professor at the UNC School of Government, said she's not sure whether local governments are using consultants more than before, but the number of such firm is growing.
Kilgour, library networking leader, dies in Chapel Hill
The Associated Press (N.C.)
Frederick Kilgour, a university professor who revolutionized the way libraries store and share data around the world died in Chapel Hill, where he finished his career at the University of North Carolina. He was 92.
Related link: http://www.newsobserver.com/682/story/467708.htmlIssues & Trends
Job Cuts
The Chronicle of Higher Education
... The president of the University of North Carolina system, Erskine B. Bowles, has announced a 10-percent cut in the system's administrative budget and a plan to eliminate some 15 jobs in order to direct more money to academics. His plan would reduce the budget by $1.3-million and cut administrative positions, including four vice presidents and six associate vice presidents or directors.
Bowles' example (Editorial)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Erskine Bowles hasn't been president of the University of North Carolina system for long, but the former White House chief of staff and investment banker has already seen ways to save taxpayers' money and make the system's home office more streamlined.
A New Diversity: Historically black colleges are reaching out to attract Hispanics
The Associated Press (N.C.)
Squeezed by stiff competition for their traditional students, historically black colleges are making a push to recruit Hispanics. ... In North Carolina, according to figures from the University of North Carolina system for the fall 2005 semester, Fayetteville State University had the highest enrollment, with 250 Hispanic students out of a student body of 4,457. Winston-Salem State University had 68 Hispanic students out of a total enrollment of 4,552.
Meet the gatekeeper
The Kannapolis Independent Tribune
Clyde Higgs may soon earn the nickname “gatekeeper.” As the first vice president of business development for the North Carolina Research Campus, he’ll oversee the $100 million venture capital fund established by David Murdock to attract businesses to the billion-dollar biotechnology project.
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.
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