May 21, 2003

Carolina in the News

Current National Coverage

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

Study: Smallpox immunity remains in body for years after vaccination
USA Today
People vaccinated against smallpox as long as 75 years ago may still retain some
immunity to the disease, a new study finds. That means as many as 150 million
Americans could already be significantly protected, researchers say. ... A small
study at the University of North Carolina found a similar long-term immune
response in 13 lab workers vaccinated 35 years ago or longer.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2003-05-20-smallpox-usat_x.htm

SARS May Create Headaches for Ultra-Discounters
Reuters (international wire service)
Dollar stores, which have performed well in the weak economy, could face a big
hurdle in the coming months as the SARS crisis threatens to curtail the supply of
cheap goods they purchase from China. ... "The ultra-discounters buy in bulks, if
they already have a huge stock, you may not see much effect immediately," said
Jay Swaminathan, a professor at the business school of University of 
North Carolina.
http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=2779236

Drug combination protects heart
News 8 Austin (Time Warner, Austin, Texas)
Every year, nearly 1 million Americans undergo medical procedures with a cath-
eter to open clogged coronary arteries. ... According to Dr. Steven Steinhubl,
lead investigator and an associate professor of medicine at the University
of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the two agents work synergistically, not just
additively, to help prevent the clotting that can lead to stroke, heart attack and
death.
http://www.news8austin.com/content/living/health_beat/Default.asp?ArID=71846&SecID=169
(Note: This segment was produced by Ivanhoe Broadcast News.)

Is the FCAT biased?
Charlotte Sun-Herald (Fla.)
District wide, Sarasota County students tested above the state average at all
grade levels and above their 2002 results in most grades on the Florida
Comprehensive Assessment Test. ... "Usually, a group of teachers develop
what they believe are important questions to compose the test," said Dr.
Gregory Cizek, a nationally recognized expert in testing issues at the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
http://www.sun-herald.com/NewsArchive2/051903/tp4np2.htm?date=051903&story=tp4np2.htm

Regional Coverage

Poll gathers views on government, helping out, more
The Sun News (Myrtle Beach, S.C.)
N.C. teens have high confidence in government, even when they don't know
much about it, according to a first-time citizenship poll. ... "There were interesting
paradoxes all the way through," said Debra Henzey, director of the consortium,
which is housed in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of
Government.
http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/mld/sunnews/news/local/5909703.htm

North Carolina News Note

An interview with Maha Alattar, professor of neurology in the School of
Medicine, was the lead story on UNC-TV's "North Carolina Now" last night.

State and Local Coverage

UNC’s Destiny Bus to revisit schools
Wilmington Star-News
The Destiny Bus, a traveling science laboratory from the University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill, will make several stops in the county later this month.
... “The feedback from students is overwhelming,” said UNC-Chapel Hill
professor Jory Weintraub, who oversees the project.
http://www.wilmingtonstar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/artikkel?SearchID=73135636878078&Avis=WM&Dato=20030516&Kategori=NEWS&Lopenr=305150345&Ref=AR

Return of Honor (Editorial)
Winston-Salem Journal
In this season of college graduations, it is mixed news to hear that prestigious
institutions of higher learning feel compelled to crack down on cheating and
dust off honor codes. Reports of widespread cheating are disheartening, but
news of campaigns to combat dishonesty and instill ideals of honor at schools
including the University of North Carolina and Duke give hope for the future.
http://www.journalnow.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=WSJ%2FMGArticle%2FWSJ_ColumnistArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1031769604173&path=!opinion!editorials&s=1037645509188

Ringing in the sales
The Triad Business Journal
When Alltel recently won R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.'s cell phone contract, the
victory symbolized the strategic shift taking place in the Triad among the cell
phone giants that dominate the market. ..."I would be surprised if there's any more
consolidation," said Nick Didow, a marketing professor at UNC-Chapel Hill, a
consultant to the cell phone industry for almost 20 years.
http://triad.bizjournals.com/triad/stories/2003/05/19/story3.html

Rebates can be a gamble
News and Observer
The promise of getting cash back helped persuade Melanie Iversen of Raleigh to
upgrade her AT&T Wireless telephone in March 2002. The Nokia model she
settled on came with a $50 rebate that would reduce her total cost. ... "It has an
immediate impact on sales," said Gary Armstrong, a marketing professor at
Kenan-Flagler Business School of the University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill.
http://newsobserver.com/business/story/2555169p-2372087c.html

Architects address lack of nurses
Charlotte Observer
You probably know there's a national nursing shortage. You may even have heard
estimates that the current 6 percent nursing vacancy rate may swell to 29 percent
by 2020. ... Godfrey's firm tackled that question in its design of a $6.8 million
rehabilitation center being built on the seventh floor of Chapel Hill's N.C.
Memorial Hospital.
http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/business/5882158.htm

Fairness should be top priority (Question and Answer)
News and Observer
Charles Liner is professor emeritus of public policy and government at the
UNC-Chapel Hill Institute of Government. THE N&O: Your writings stress that
the top goal of any taxation system must be fairness. What's fair about North
Carolina's?
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2546985p-2364855c.html

Autistic children's classes remain
News and Observer
Wake County school administrators tried to reassure worried parents of autistic
children on Friday that there wouldn't be major changes in programs for their
children, but the families remained skeptical. ... Many families come to Wake
because it uses TEACCH, a program for autistic children developed by UNC-
Chapel Hill.
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2544529p-2362649c.html

Cell phone study pushed
Fayetteville Observer
In 2001 and this year, state Rep. Mary McAllister of Fayetteville tried unsuccess-
fully to make it illegal for people to talk on handheld cellular phones while driving.
... They said police are noting when cell phone conversations are a factor in
accidents, and they also referred to a recent study by the University of North
Carolina Highway Safety Research Center.
http://www.fayettevillenc.com/story.php?Template=region&Story=5652257

Mission mixing miffs group
News and Observer
The state's new Actual Innocence Commission is in danger of collapsing before
it accomplishes anything because it's getting confused with the death penalty
moratorium movement, which many of its members oppose. ... Commission
member Rich Rosen, a law professor at UNC-Chapel Hill, said the reality is
that both the commission and the moratorium movement are concerned with the
same problem of mistaken convictions.
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2544520p-2362605c.html

Rare new lily species identified in Sandhills
News and Observer
Specimens of a 3-foot-tall, yellow-orange, "fire-loving" species of lily discovered
recently in Eastern North Carolina are on display at the University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill Herbarium.
http://newsobserver.com/features/story/2544628p-2362583c.html
(Note: This coverage was the result of a UNC news release,
http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/may03/lilly050903.html)

Issues and Trends Affecting Carolina

State Department Is Said to Plan Interviews With Nearly All Foreigners
Seeking Visas
The Chronicle of Higher Education
College officials are worried that a reported government proposal to interview
nearly all foreigners applying for visas to enter the United States will keep many
foreign students and professors from getting into the country in time for the fall
term.
http://chronicle.com/daily/2003/05/2003051901n.htm
(Note: The Chronicle of Higher Education requires a subscription to access
articles. )

Estes Drive project concerns neighbors
The Herald-Sun
Although the tone is friendly at the moment, neighbors say they still have concerns
about UNC’s plans for a wooded parcel on the south side of Estes Drive
Extension.
http://www.herald-sun.com/orange/10-354377.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