June 29, 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

Heart Disease :: Stent wars ease into stent discussions
SpiritIndia.com
Acrimonious debate over the use of bare metal stents (BMS) versus drug-eluting stents (DES) is ending. Four new studies presented during a Monday news conference are quickly turning what had been open warfare between BMS and DES advocates into more measured discussions. “We no longer have a war on our hands but a very serious discussion about which direction to take,” said AHA Past-President Sidney Smith Jr., M.D., professor of medicine and director of the Center for Cardiovascular Science and Medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

ADA: Self Glucose Monitoring Found Unneeded Ritual for Many Type 2 Diabetes
MedPage Today (United Kingdom)
Those daily glucose-monitoring finger sticks may be overkill for many patients with type 2 diabetes, reported investigators here. … John Buse, M.D., Ph.D., of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the president of the ADA, commented that he had no major quibble with Dr. Farmer's results. His own research, he said, had found that self monitoring was not as beneficial as had been anticipated, and he suspects that "a lot of glucose self-monitoring in the U.S. is not cost-effective. A lot of patients check more frequently that they should."

National Coverage

Watching a loved one sink into Alzheimer's, dementia can be harrowing
The USA Today
Barbara Center has raised four children, but now, at 59, she's helping care for her mother, who has Alzheimer's. … Caregivers who don't get any relief can develop anxiety and depression and are prone to getting sick themselves, says Jan Busby-Whitehead, a spokeswoman for the American Geriatrics Society.
Note: Busby-Whitehead is director of the Program on Aging and Chief of the Division of Geriatric Medicine at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Regional Coverage

PCC commits to climate initiative
The Times (Tigard, Ore.)
Portland Community College District President Preston Pulliams has signed the American and University Presidents Climate Commitment. … To date, 291 presidents nationwide have signed the climate commitment. The list includes the entire University of California system (10 institutions), Arizona State University, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, University of Tennessee and the Los Angeles Community College District (nine institutions).

State & Local Coverage

Its Destiny's in nation's capital
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
The yellow tape is out. A bejeweled homecoming tiara has been stolen just hours before the big game. There are two suspects. Using DNA left at the crime scene, it's up to a team of investigators to crack the case. It's not "CSI" or "Law & Order." It's just a typical day on UNC Chapel Hill's Destiny traveling science bus. … Taking a detour from its usual journey to North Carolina schools, the UNC science bus stopped in the nation's capital Thursday to showcase its bells and whistles for Washington lawmakers.
UNC Media Advisory: http://www.unc.edu/news/media/2007/destinydc062607.html

UNC law school may end up at new campus
Triangle Business Journal
Jack Boger is still awaiting the results of a study into a proposed $65 million expansion and renovation of the University of North Carolina School of Law, but he's already chewing on a few solid assumptions.

Durham has 11.3% growth in 6 years
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
Word that Durham was the third fastest-growing city in North Carolina over the last six years signals that it is an attractive place to live but also risks a downside, experts say. … But Jim Johnson, director of the Urban Investment Strategies Center at UNC Chapel Hill, said there still may be cause for some concern. Johnson said such a high growth rate can put stress on the city's infrastructure, traffic problems, crowding in schools and could drive up housing costs -- but that the effects depend on the demographics of the new arrivals.

The Fire This Time
“The State of Things,” WUNC-FM
In a nod to James Baldwin’s best-selling 1963 work, "The Fire Next Time," North Carolina native and UNC-Chapel Hill English Professor Randall Kenan examines the state of racial discourse in America today in his new book, "The Fire This Time" (Melville House/2007).

Talk radio played role in bill's defeat
The Charlotte Observer
When the immigration bill met its demise Thursday in the U.S. Senate, Jeff Katz felt confident taking a bit of credit from his radio booth in Charlotte. … Ferrel Guillory, director of the public life program at UNC Chapel Hill, said talk radio programs are powerful at rallying an already committed audience.

Sweating in pursuit of superhot iPhone
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Apple devotees are soldiering through 90-degree weather today, smoldering outside Triangle retailers in hopes of being among the first to get their hands on the hotly anticipated iPhone.…"It says a lot about the coolness of it," said Arvind Malhotra, associate professor of entrepreneurship at UNC-Chapel Hill's Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Common sense knows younger children lag behind
The Wilson Daily Times
Consider the debate over moving back the birthday cutoff at which children begin kindergarten in North Carolina. Logic dictates that the younger the child, the greater the developmental differences when there are age gaps between the children. … One childhood researcher from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill suggested in an Associated Press story that changing the kindergarten cutoff date was unnecessary and won't bring many benefits.

ECC educator attends World Leadership Program
The Daily Southerner (Tarboro)
Alan Stephenson, Dean of Arts and Sciences at Edgecombe Community College, attended the eighth annual World View Global Education Leadership Program from June 17-22. Stephenson was among 48 participants who came to the UNC-Chapel Hill campus for a week-long program on global issues and trends.

Audit finds improprieties by UNC pharmacy chief
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The director of pharmacy at UNC Hospitals double billed for travel expenses and was reimbursed for his son's cell phone and travel costs, the state auditor's office says.

N.C. offers 21 outdoor dramas
The Salisbury Post
Daniel Boone, Henry Berry Lowrie and Virginia Dare will again be portrayed in outdoor dramas across North Carolina this summer. … Dramas scheduled in North Carolina this summer and fall are listed below, alphabetically by town. For locator maps, Web sites of theater companies and information on outdoor dramas nationwide, visit the Website of the Institute of Outdoor Drama at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, www.unc.edu/ depts/outdoor/.
UNC News Releases: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/jun07/moonshine060607.html and http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/jun07/oddlist060607.html

'Mysteries of the Lost Colony' coming to Raleigh
The Wilson Daily Times
Explore one of history's most astonishing unsolved mysteries in a major exhibition opening Oct. 20 at the N.C. Museum of History. To bring this exciting adventure to Raleigh, the N.C. Museum of History is collaborating with not only the British Museum, but with the Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences at East Carolina University, National Park Service, Roanoke Island Historical Association, UNC-Chapel Hill and private collectors.

Issues & Trends

N.C. buildings to be smoke-free
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
A bill to ban smoking in state buildings passed both chambers.The legislation would prohibit smoking in buildings owned or leased by state government, including those on college campuses. The only exception would be students who have already signed contracts to live in dorms where smoking is allowed on seven University of North Carolina campuses. Those dorms would not go smoke-free until the beginning of the 2008-09 academic year, when those contracts expire. The bill passed 110-3 and now heads to Gov. Mike Easley's desk. Another bill this session to ban smoking in restaurants and public places failed.

Triangle Execs Head to Boston Looking for Cash
Carolina Newswire
The Research Triangle Regional Partnership and Council for Entrepreneurial Development partnered to promote North Carolina's innovation economy to a group of leading investors in Boston on Thursday, June 28. … Representatives from Duke University, Fidelity Investments, North Carolina Biotechnology Center, North Carolina Board of Science & Technology, North Carolina State University, UNC-Chapel Hill and several other Triangle-based firms also attended the luncheon.

Scholarships help community college students transfer to 4-year universities
Asheville Citizen-Times
Although they comprise 45 percent of all undergraduates, students at two-year and community colleges are often overlooked. Few funds are available to help top-performing community college graduates transfer to four-year institutions despite their high levels of ability and financial need. … Andrew McAllister, of Franklin, attends Southwestern Community College, will transfer to UNC Chapel Hill.

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.