January 2, 2003

Carolina in the News

Current International and National Coverage

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

As Early Admissions Rise, Colleges Debate Practice
The New York Times
As debate over the merits of early decision college admissions continued, early 
applications rose sharply at many universities this year. ... This year several 
institutions — including Yale, Stanford, Beloit College, the University of North 
Carolina and Mary Washington College — announced that they would shift to 
early action admission from early decision to reduce the pressure on students. ... 
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/23/education/23ADMI.html
(Note: The New York Times requires free registration to access articles. 
For the complete article, please send a request to news@unc.edu.)

The Wannabes
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Glance through Texas Tech University's strategic plan for the next three years, 
and you'll see big goals in bold print. The university wants to be among the 50 
best public universities. ... Texas Tech is like many other state universities that 
want to translate a strong regional presence into national recognition and 
respect. ... "Whether we need them or not, we don't have the money to afford 
them," says Alex Warner, chairman of the education committee in the House of 
Representatives in North Carolina, which faces a $3 Billion deficit this year. 
North Carolina wants more research universities, especially in the eastern and 
western parts of the state, Mr. Warner says. But for now, he says, the state 
must protect its flagship institutions, NC State University and UNC Chapel Hill. ...
http://chronicle.com/weekly/v49/i17/17a01801.htm
(Note: The Chronicle of Higher Education requires a subscription to access articles. 
For the complete article, please send a request to news@unc.edu.)

How lobsters chart a course for home 
The Guardian (U.K.)
It seems unlikely that lobster cages might ever vie with pigeon coops as the 
object of long-range racers' obsessions. ... Larry Boles and Kenneth Lohmann, 
of the University of North Carolina, arranged for spiny lobsters to be caught and 
transported to test sites between seven and 23 miles away. ... 
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,3604,867383,00.html
(Note: Other coverage to date includes The Globe and Mail (Canada), The 
National Post (Canada), Newsday (Long Island, N.Y.), The Salt Lake City 
Tribune and the News and Observer. The UNC researchers also have done 
interviews with The Scotsman (Edinburgh), CNN, The New York Times, 
Science News and National Public Radio. A UNC news release on this study is 
at http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/jan03/lohmann121702.html)

Freshman Senator Sees the Presidency as His Next Office
The New York Times
If Democrats hungry for a winner in 2004 are hunting for a presidential 
candidate who has what the last guy lacked, Senator John Edwards of North 
Carolina stands out as the anti-Gore. ... "We had a conversation about it when 
we were in law school," she said ... She even remembered the bench where she 
and her future husband were sitting on the campus of the University of North 
Carolina at Chapel Hill ... 
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/30/politics/30EDWA.html
(Note: Other coverage highlighting Edwards' Carolina connection includes 
The Houston Chronicle, The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, The Milwaukee 
Journal Sentinel and The Bradenton (N.J.) Herald. The New York Times 
requires free registration to access articles. For the complete article, please 
send a request to news@unc.edu.)

For Lower-Income Buyers, A Surge in Homeownership 
The Washington Post 
An unlikely, largely unnoticed change is underway in the Washington area, one 
of the nation's priciest housing markets: More and more people with modest
incomes are buying homes. ... "A lot of the affordable mortgages at this point 
are really pushing the envelope," said William M. Rohe, director of the Center 
for Urban and Regional Studies at the University of North Carolina at 
Chapel Hill."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A31278-2002Dec23.html

'Z' Zips Into the Zeitgeist, Subbing for 'S' in Hot Slang
The Wall Street Journal
As letters of the alphabet go, it's always brought up the rear. ... "It started as 
a way for [hip hop celebrities] to present themselves as real folks in the ghetto -- 
the folks who were so concerned with just living that they didn't have the luxury 
of learning to spell," explains Connie Eble, an English professor at University of 
North Carolina at Chapel Hill .. 
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1041208189749966913-search,00.html?collection=wsjie%2F30day&vql_string=Tkacik%3Cin%3E%28article%2Dbody%29
(Note: The Wall Street Journal requires a subscription to access articles. 
For the complete article, please send a request to news@unc.edu.)

Worst and Best Picks 
Forbes
Among major U.S. magazines the one you hold commands the highest 
subscription price. ... But I agreed with the University of North Carolina economist 
James Smith. He said the economy would grow by just under 4% in the second half. 
http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2003/0106/037.html

National News Note

James Smith, director of the Kenan Institute's Center for Business Forecasting, 
was quoted in The Los Angeles Times on December 30 about the economic 
outlook for 2003. 

State and Local Coverage

Moeser upholds Christian group's status 
News and Observer
UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor James Moeser on Tuesday ordered the university 
to allow the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship to continue as an officially 
recognized student organization, despite a letter last month that threatened the 
group's status on campus. ... 
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2056892p-1978483c.html
(Note: A related story appeared in The Herald Sun, 
http://www.herald-sun.com/orange/10-304769.html)

Yellow stairwells and sundial speed bumps (Question and Answer)
News and Observer
The nation's oldest public university is rapidly changing shape. At UNC-Chapel 
Hill, where one-sixth of the $3.1 billion in higher education bonds approved by 
voters in 2000 is to be spent, it is common to hear the pounding of hammers and 
the buzzing of saws and to see chain-link fences around numerous construction 
sites. Paul Kapp, an architect who did his undergraduate work at Cornell 
University and his graduate work at the University of Pennsylvania, gives more 
than a passing glance to the building going on across campus. ... 
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2052780p-1976021c.html

Noted names of 2002 
News and Observer
... ROBERT "ROBIN" RYDER: Professor of epidemiology, UNC-Chapel Hill: 
Ryder, co-director of the N.C. Public Health Preparedness Center at the UNC 
School of Public Health, focused on the enabling factors of bioterrorism ... 
HOLDEN THORP: Director, Morehead Science Discovery and Outreach 
Center: Thorp, a UNC-Chapel Hill chemist who is leading efforts to revitalize 
Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, oversaw several improvements ... 
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2056913p-1978432c.html

Cloning as risky as it is difficult 
News and Observer
Despite a religious sect's claim that it created the first human clone, Triangle 
researchers and ethicists familiar with the science say cloning remains fraught with 
unacceptable medical and moral risks. ... "I think it's completely stupid. It's 
silliness, from what we know about the problems," said Oliver Smithies, a 
molecular biologist and pioneer of genetic engineering at the University of 
North Carolina at Chapel Hill. ... 
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2048433p-1973576c.html

Global trade seen as scourge and savior
Charlotte Observer
When proponents of free trade trumpet the benefits of globalization, they often 
point to workers like Stephen Hader. ... "Yes, we've lost 500,000 textile jobs in 
the last 50 years, but we have created 2 million new jobs," said Jim Smith, an 
economist with UNC Chapel Hill.
http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/news/4833193.htm

An Inevitable Tilt
The Winston-Salem Journal
The Cleveland Avenue Homes in eastern Winston-Salem and the neighborhood 
around it are in Bus 789 and Bus 777 territory ... But it has led several urban 
school districts in North Carolina to essentially resegregate, although the problem 
is still more pronounced in Northern states, said Jack Boger, the deputy director 
of the University of North Carolina Center for Civil Rights. ... 
http://www.journalnow.com/wsj/news/education/MGB0G1JEAAD.html

This philosopher avoids ivory towers 
News and Observer 
Susan Wolf doesn't have to ask people whether they feel uncomfortable around 
philosophers. She just tells them what she does for a living. "When I tell people I 
teach philosophy, you can almost see them back away," said Wolf, a member of 
the philosophy department at UNC-Chapel Hill. ...
http://newsobserver.com/news/triangle/story/2052894p-1975979c.html

A letter to the editor by Peter Reinhardt, director of the Office of Environment, 
Health and Safety was published December 25 in The Chapel Hill News. 
The letter was about recent coverage of a local waste-site issue. This letter is no 
longer available online, but is included at the bottom of Carolina in the News.

Issues and Trends Affecting Carolina

Is the 'push' mentality warping higher ed?
The Christian Science Monitor 
Michael Newton ran the marathon. Not the 26-mile kind, but the years-long race 
for admission to a big-name university. ... To deflate the pressure so many high 
school students feel, some observers say colleges should make some changes 
themselves. For one, they could step back from the "early decision" application 
process ... 
http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/1224/p12s02-lehl.html

Title IX's Anniversary (Editorial)
Winston-Salem Journal
In the debate surrounding Title IX and women in sports in the year of its 30th 
anniversary, the effect that requiring equal treatment of female athletes in school has 
had upon the relationship between sports and education is too often overlooked. ... 
http://www.journalnow.com/wsj/opinion/editorial/MGB1RXY6AAD.html

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
***

Chapel Hill News
Letter to the Editor
December 25, 2002

UNC addressing waste-site issues 

Reports in a recent news story (CHN, Dec. 15) and editorial (CHN, Dec. 18) have 
left News readers with some misleading information about the relationship between a 
proposed widening of Estes Drive Extension and municipal garbage buried in that 
vicinity years ago. 

A recent state Department of Transportation study will help guide that agency 
regarding plans to widen Estes Drive Extension. We know that household garbage 
and Hurricane Hazel debris were buried in that vicinity as part of a 1950s landfill, but 
anecdotal records have proven to be unreliable. The recent DOT excavations found 
only household garbage. 

Based on our review of the records and DOT results, we at the university do not 
believe that the 1950s landfill contains radioactive waste. There is no indication that 
it poses a threat to groundwater or drinking water. The university has provided the 
town and Department of Environment and Natural Resources with all of the 
information requested about this landfill. 

The university, working with the Town of Chapel Hill and the N.C. Department of 
Environment and Natural Resources, is addressing environmental issues at two waste 
sites on the Horace Williams tract. They are a 0.2-acre chemical waste site and a 35-
acre municipal landfill. The university remains committed to remediation of these sites. 

Peter A. Reinhardt 
Director, UNC office of environment, health and safety