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March 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
Possible Schizophrenia Trigger Found
United Press International
U.S. scientists say they've found a molecular mechanism in brain tissue that may be a genetic trigger for schizophrenia. ..."To our knowledge this study is the first to associate altered expression of microRNAs with schizophrenia," the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill said in a release.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/mar07/perkins032807.htmlNational Coverage
Biologist Ransom A. Myers, 54; Warned of Overfishing in Oceans
The Washington Post
Ransom A. Myers, 54, a world-renowned fisheries biologist whose research showed that the number of large fish in the world's oceans has dropped by 90 percent in the past 50 years, died of a brain tumor March 27 at a hospital in Halifax, Nova Scotia. ..."We certainly hope this most recent paper will add a great deal of insight into ecosystem problems in overfishing," said Charles H. Petersen, his co-author and a marine sciences professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/mar07/petersonshark032807.htmlSenate Bypassed on Many Key Justice Jobs
"Morning Edition," National Public Radio
The Bush administration has taken full advantage of a Patriot Act provision that permits interim appointments of United States attorneys without Senate confirmation. Of federal prosecutors now on the job, 21 of 93 did not face Senate confirmation. ...Michael Gerhardt says the White House has traditionally nominated U.S. attorneys who were suggested by senators from the states where they'd serve.
Note: Gerhardt is the Samuel Ashe Distinguished professor in constitutional law at UNC-Chapel Hill.MRIs for Women at Risk for Breast Cancer
Ivanhoe Newswire
Women who are diagnosed with breast cancer in one breast may want to have an MRI to screen the other breast for cancer as well -- even if mammography and a physical exam have suggested the breast is free of cancer. ...The research was carried out by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill investigators, who followed 969 women recently diagnosed with breast cancer at 25 centers in the United States and Canada.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/mar07/pisano_nejm032607.html
Note: Ivanhoe has a syndicated television series and its reports are broadcast in 250 markets reaching 80 million U.S. households.Antidepressants May Not Help Fight Bipolar Disorder
HealthDay News
Patients with bipolar disorder will gain no treatment benefit by adding an antidepressant to a standard mood stabilizer such as lithium, a new study finds. ..."Treatment needs to be individualized, but, for the vast majority of patients, antidepressants don't offer critical benefit and may carry significant risk," said Dr. Richard Weisler, adjunct professor of psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and adjunct associate professor of psychiatry at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C.Where You Live Affects Heart Disease Risk More Than Race, Researchers Say
WebMD
Contrary to previous findings, a new study shows that where you live plays a bigger role in your risk for heart disease than your ethnicity or race. ...Sidney Smith, MD, director of the center for cardiovascular science and medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a past president of the American Heart Association, says the findings are consistent with global trends.Regional Coverage
University to go wireless
The Kansas City Star
“Believe it or not, e-mail is old fashioned. We wanted a technology that reaches out to young people today.” ...Rave Wireless, which is based in New York, works with wireless companies such as Sprint to provide services at campuses such as California State University Monterey Bay, Georgetown University, Montclair State University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of South Florida.Just empty calories
Norwich Bulletin (Conn.)
Erica Pelish-Sundstrom gave up drinking soda a few years ago, and started drinking more water. ...Barry Popkin of the University of North Carolina said this new study should help schools decide what to offer students. "What we need in school vending machines are water, skim milk and 1 percent fat milk."The Age of the Aerotropolis
Business Tennessee Magazine
Ambitious labels play well with politicians. That’s not cynicism—just basic marketing. But that’s not to say ambitious titles can’t be accurate. Such is the case with “aerotropolis,” a concept coined about a decade ago by John Kasarda, a University of North Carolina business professor.State and Local Coverage
Carolina North details are still lacking (Editorial)
The Chapel Hill Herald
The three schematic drawings look like something you might see on the wall of a doctor's office. Information about the risks of arthritis, perhaps, or the inner workings of the digestive system. In fact, they are the three possible site plans for Carolina North that the university unveiled the other day.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/mar07/cnorthmeeting031407.htmlCounty joins effort to help low-income students go to college
The Burlington Times-News
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is one of 10 colleges and universities joining in a $10 million partnership to create advising programs to help low-income students enroll in college. ...UNC-Chapel Hill will receive $1 million over four years to create the Carolina College Advising Corps, which will place recent UNC-Chapel Hill graduates as college advisers in 18 partner high schools across the state.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/mar07/jackkentcooke032107.html'Yield to Heels' Campaign to Focus on Pedestrian Safety
WRAL-TV (CBS, Raleigh)
A plan to promote pedestrian safety kicked off in Chapel Hill on Wednesday. The "Yield to Heels" campaign stationed volunteers at four crosswalks to distribute flyers and information. The goal is to remind walkers of their rules of the road.
UNC Event brief: http://www.unc.edu/news/briefs/2007/032607.htmlUNC urges safety on the streets
News 14 Carolina
The death of University of North Carolina student mascot Jason Ray is adding new meaning to an old program at the school. Wednesday marks the sixth year that volunteers will hand out fliers to remind people of pedestrian safety in what's called Yield to Heels.
Related link: http://rdu.news14.com/content/your_news/triangle/default.asp?ArID=102493Friends mourn UNC mascot
The Fayetteville Observer
Brandon Dees remembers Jason Ray from their days in business school. Christine Ciszek knew him as the mascot, Rameses, for the University of North Carolina cheerleading squad.
Related link: http://www.raleighchronicle.com/2007032808.html
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/mar07/rayservice032707.html'A fierce desire to achieve'
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
They entered World War II through 1940s Alabama, when even black soldiers had to sit in the colored section of the local movie theaters, and nobody expected them to thrive as pilots. ...That's why (Chuck) Stone, now a journalism professor at UNC-Chapel Hill, cherishes what the Tuskegee Airmen did.One family tragedy reveals two Americas (Opinion column)
The Charlotte Observer
Here is what she said her first day back on the campaign trail: "I think that we're foolhardy to not be engaging in federal funding of stem cell research in the most aggressive way we possibly can," Elizabeth Edwards told supporters in Cleveland. ...Here, the average North Carolinian earns $20,307 a year, the Census shows. Nearly 20 percent of the state's residents under age 65 lack health insurance, according to the School of Public Health at UNC Chapel Hill.Dentists catch more than cavities
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Most people should take their teeth to their grave unless they are afraid to visit the dentist. Those are the folks often mumbling something about dentists pulling teeth with rusty pliers. ...Dr. John Williams, dean of the school of dentistry at UNC-Chapel Hill, says he also is aware that some people may have had a painful experience with their teeth during childhood and developed a fear or phobia of dentistry.Fiber in, gas out (Commentary)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Don't let a little hot air keep you from foods that support health. It's an issue many people tell me about: "I like beans and cabbage, but they don't like me." ...Suzanne Havala Hobbs is a registered dietitian and a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Health Policy at UNC.School study draws doubt
The Winston-Salem Journal
The head of the local chapter of the NAACP said yesterday that he doubts a recent study showing that school choice has had no effect on test scores of students in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools. ...The study, a doctoral dissertation by Hinckley A. Jones-Sanpei at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, looked at the effect of school choice on students' educational achievement in Forsyth County.Reed receives new appointment
WCHL-AM (Chapel Hill)
A new appointment from UNC’s chancellor is giving what might be called a “reboot” to the career of campus technology director Dan Reed. He says he’s been named Chancellor James Moeser’s senior adviser for strategy and innovation.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/mar07/reed032707.htmlWhen parents are the experts (Opinion-editorial column)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
More than three decades have passed since parents of children with special needs took on the commonwealth of Pennsylvania to keep it from excluding their children from school. ...Don Stedman is a senior fellow at Action for Children-N.C. and dean emeritus of the School of Education at UNC-Chapel Hill.Carrboro's newest residents want out
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
A neighborhood still angry at being annexed last year has found a new ally. ...David Lawrence, a professor specializing in local government in UNC-Chapel Hill's School of Government, said legislators usually submit de-annexation bills when the local governing board and the affected residents both agree on it.Issues and Trends
Driver's Licenses for Illegal Immigrants Urged
WRAL-TV (CBS, Raleigh)
A Latino advocacy group has called on state lawmakers to ease the requirements that immigrants have to meet to obtain a driver's license, saying it would make the roads safer. ...El Pueblo's legislative agenda also calls for providing all North Carolina students, including illegal immigrants, access to in-state tuition at University of North Carolina system campuses. A similar proposal failed during last year's legislative session.
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.
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