Feb. 14, 2007

Carolina in the News

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

International Coverage

US university honours slave-poet
The Associated Press (International)
A dormitory at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has been named for a black slave who became a published poet. The George Moses Horton Residence Hall, dedicated on day, is the first building at the university named after a slave.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/feb07/hortonhall020907.html

Binge eating common disorder
United Press International
A U.S. study of eating disorders says binge eating, not yet officially recognized as a psychiatric illness, is more common than anorexia nervosa or bulimia. ...The Harvard study was partly funded by two pharmaceutical companies and some critics say they want to have binge eating classified as a mental disorder to get insurance coverage for treatment. But Dr. Cynthia Bulik of the University of North Carolina said that the pressure is coming from patients.

National Coverage

University dorm named for 19th century slave
McClatchy Newspapers
Slavery was his curse. Selling vegetables was his living. Verse was his love. George Moses Horton, a Chatham County slave and self-made poet, now has a University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill dorm named for him.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/feb07/hortonhall020907.html

Avoiding a Weighty Side Effect
ScienceNOW Daily News
Weight gain can be a serious problem for patients taking antipsychotic drugs for schizophrenia--not only do the drugs have a sedative effect that slows people down, but they also stimulate the appetite, a combination that can mean a big weight gain. It so happens that this is also what certain antihistamines, which counter allergic reactions, do. ...The first antipsychotic, chlorpromazine, was originally intended as an antihistamine when it was invented in the early 1950s, notes neuropsychopharmacologist Bryan Roth of the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

Regional Coverage

Scientists track growth of babies' brains
South Bend Tribune (Ind.)
Baby boys are born with brains about 10 percent larger than those of baby girls, researchers have found. ..."That gender difference is set in stone very, very early in brain development," said Dr. John Gilmore, a professor of psychiatry in the UNC School of Medicine and lead author of the study.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/feb07/graymatter020707.html

University can't be great on the cheap (Editorial)
St. Petersburg Times
The biggest obstacle to the University of Florida's ambition of becoming a nationally elite academic institution is as clear as it has ever been. It's the cheap politicians in Tallahassee. ...Its student-faculty ratio is half-again as big as that of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and it ranks 123rd on measures of "faculty resource."

State and Local Coverage

UNC chancellor wins diversity award
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor James Moeser received an award Tuesday from the American Council on Education for efforts to improve diversity in higher education. Moeser and three others received the Reginald Wilson Diversity Leadership Award, a lifetime achievement honor given by the nation's major higher education coordinating organization.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/feb07/aceaward021307.htm

UNC autism expert recognized for work
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Samuel L. Odom will receive the 2007 Outstanding Research Award from the Council for Exceptional Children. Odom, director of the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute at UNC-Chapel Hill, has dedicated his career to studying preschool inclusion and peer social interaction.
UNC People brief: http://www.unc.edu/news/briefs/2007/021307.html

UNC symposium slated on energy
The Chapel Hill Herald
The Carolina Environmental Program will present a symposium on Energy and Environment in North Carolina on March 9-10 at the Friday Center.
UNC Event brief: http://www.unc.edu/news/briefs/2007/020507.html

Town OKs plan for Carolina Inn
The Chapel Hill Herald
The university now has the Town Council's approval to expand the Carolina Inn by turning the adjacent Whitehead Hall into new guest rooms and other features. ...UNC officials said the occupancy tax is charged for non-university related guests, but not if the guests are there on university-related matters. The council ended up approving the plans 8-1, with Laurin Easthom dissenting.

A Split: Jones differs with Bush on Iraq
The Winston-Salem Journal
A Republican congressman from North Carolina has split with many in his party, going so far as to co-sponsor a resolution opposing President Bush's plan for additional troops for Iraq. ...Ferrell Guillory, the director of the Program on Southern Politics, Media and the Public Life at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, said that Jones has a reputation for taking things to heart.

N.C. a leader in response to warming
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
North Carolina-based companies are leaders, not laggards, when it comes to responding to the business challenges posed by global warming, state Treasurer Richard Moore said. ...Meanwhile, Duke Energy wants to build new coal-fired power plants, which contribute to pollution problems, said Pete Andrews, professor of public policy at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Love your heart
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
When it comes to the emotional condition of the heart, most women like to think they are experts. But many remain in the dark about the health of their actual, physical hearts. ...Women who come up with a low risk for heart disease using the old method are probably fine. But Dr. Paula Miller, a cardiologist at UNC Hospitals, recommends that women of moderate or greater risk get the new screening.

Chocolate as a health food? Sorry, sweetie, it isn't so (Commentary)
The Charlotte Observer
Don't fall for the hype. Chocolate is not a health food. Once again, headlines are proclaiming studies paid for by the chocolate industry that have found suggestions of possible benefits from specially produced cocoa bars. ...Suzanne Havala Hobbs is a registered dietitian and a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Health Policy at UNC.

Issues and Trends

Grant and take? (Editorial)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
It has competition from the Democrats who now control Congress, but the White House has rolled out its own proposed increase to the popular Pell Grants, which aid families in sending their youngsters to college. ...University of North Carolina system schools have had a steady run of tuition increases, for instance.

More costs may lurk under Lot 5
The Chapel Hill Herald
It's not clear what awaits work crews when and if they start digging into the asphalt and earth of downtown Lot 5 to build underground parking, homes and shops.

Elementary school's principal selected
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The Chatham County Board of Education named Julie Vandiver principal of the new Virginia Cross Elementary School on Monday night. Her starting date is March 1. ...Vandiver also serves as an adjunct professor at UNC Chapel Hill, where she supervises graduate students in the master's of school administration program.

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.