May 2, 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

Analysis: Lack of diversity dogs trials
United Press International
Vigorous efforts are under way to increase racial and ethnic diversity in clinical trials, but more needs to be done, researchers and advocates say. "We need to know the right dose and side effects (of drugs) for these patients," said Howard McLeod, director of the Institute for Pharmacogenomics and Individualized Therapy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Infants acquire pertussis from family members
Reuters
Family members are responsible for more than three quarters of pertussis cases transmitted to infants, according to a new report. ...To get a better handle on precisely how infants are catching pertussis, Dr. Annelies Van Rie from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and associates collected comprehensive data on close contacts of a group of infants with laboratory-confirmed pertussis.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/mar07/pertussis032707.html

Murdoch's politics worry Wall St Journal employees
Reuters
News Corp.'s (NWSa.N: Quote, Profile , Research) $5 billion bid for Dow Jones & Co. (DJ.N: Quote, Profile , Research) sparked fears among Wall Street Journal reporters on Tuesday that the staid bastion of business journalism could take a more political tone under the ownership of media mogul Rupert Murdoch. ...."It's got conservative editorial writers and straight-down-the-middle trustworthy reporters," said Philip Meyer, a University of North Carolina journalism professor and author of the book "The Vanishing Newspaper."

National Coverage

Global heart efforts pay off
USA Today
A sharp drop in heart attack deaths in more than a dozen countries coincides with global efforts to make sure patients receive proven treatments, doctors report today. ...Cardiologist Sidney Smith of the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, a leader of the guidelines movement, says the findings are "exactly what we would hope would happen from the major guideline efforts in this area over the past decade."

Could Calcium and Vitamin D Cause Brain Lesions?
Ivanhoe Newswire
Consuming high levels of calcium and vitamin D may lead to greater volumes of brain lesions in elderly people. Brain lesions are damaged regions in the brain that can increase the risk of developing dementia, depression, cognitive impairment and stroke. ...Researchers from Duke University in North Carolina and the University of North Carolina studied MRI scans from 232 men and women between ages 60 and 86.
Note: Ivanhoe has a syndicated television series and its reports are broadcast in 250 markets reaching 80 million U.S. households.

Duke's Image Faces More Polishing as Applications Sag
Bloomberg
Duke University alumni sometimes refer to the Durham, North Carolina, school as the Harvard of the South. It's not the magnet it used to be. ..."Both of these incidents happening at an institution as prestigious as Duke is an extra blow,'' said Ferrel Guillory, director of the Program on Public Life at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Updates on Billion-Dollar Campaigns at 26 Universities
The Chronicle of Higher Education
The 26 American universities that are seeking to raise at least $1-billion collected a total of $411.7-million in gifts and pledges during the last month for which they had data available. ...The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, $2.08-billion as of March 31 (increase of $16.1-million in the last month); the goal was $2-billion by 2007.

Reflections From Limbo (Opinion-editorial column)
The Chronicle of Higher Education
This is not the column I expected to write. I expected my job search would be over by March, at the latest, and I would be able to sign off with a definitive narrative of success or failure. By this time last year, I had known I wouldn't be getting a job offer, and had adjusted my plans accordingly. ...Nora L. Corrigan is a doctoral candidate in Renaissance literature at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Does gender matter? Four athletes offer their takes
The Chronicle of Higher Education
..."Some players enjoy that friendship and emotional support from a female coach that they might not find in a guy. I think that's a challenge for men coaches, finding out: Is this a player who has emotional needs? Because it's not a natural thing for guys to get inside their players' heads. Some female players might have trouble putting a barrier up between their soccer life and their personal life. If something is going wrong, that wall is infiltrated. The male coach might be completely oblivious to that." ...Heather O'Reilly, senior soccer player, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Regional Coverage

What we need in Ohio (Editorial)
The Times-Reporter (New Philadelphia, Ohio)
Wisconsin is launching a new program on May 10 that is designed to increase the number of students in that state who attend college. ...According to the Associated Press, this program is similar to ones already in operation in Indiana, Oklahoma and at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

State and Local Coverage

Professors step outside their areas
The Chapel Hill Herald
UNC professors with a research focus in African-American studies but with appointments in programs as disparate as anthropology, nursing, history and communication studies may never cross paths on the Carolina campus. To UNC African-American studies professor Reginald Hildebrand, that means there have been a lot of missed opportunities for collaboration.

Value of study up in the air
The Charlotte Observer
Is the study of N.C. foam plants worth doing? Critics insist the research -- especially requests for blood -- will only spook plant neighbors while revealing little about their health. ...UNC Chapel Hill epidemiologist Steven Wing, who serves on a study advisory panel, doubts the research will reveal whether the plants are hurting anybody.
Related link: http://www.wbt.com/news/detail_wbt.cfm?article_id=31117

Protests smaller this year
The Winston-Salem Journal
Though the crowd was much smaller, the refrain from local immigration protesters yesterday was the same as in marches and rallies held throughout the Triad a year ago. ...About 400,000 illegal immigrants live in North Carolina, according to the Pew Hispanic Center, a national nonpartisan research group based in Washington. There are more than 600,000 Hispanics living in North Carolina, according to the University of North Carolina’s Kenan Institute.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/jan06/economicimpact010306.htm

Edwards on poverty
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
In the afterword of a new book, John Edwards lays out his own moon shot: ending poverty in America in 30 years. Edwards is one of three editors of "Ending Poverty in America," a compilation of essays published through The Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity at UNC-Chapel Hill.
Related link: http://www.robesonian.com/articles/2007/05/02/news/editorials/editorial01.txt
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/dec06/povertycenterbook121106.htm

Healthful hidden ingredient: Try tofu in your recipes (Commentary)
The Charlotte Observer
Tofu's reputation as a health food is well deserved. The rubbery white slabs of soy are rich in protein but low in the things most of us should cut back on -- sodium, animal protein, saturated fat, trans fat and cholesterol. ...Suzanne Havala Hobbs is a registered dietitian and a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Health Policy at UNC.

Parker asking $51.9 million for schools
The Clayton News-Star
Johnston County Schools Supt. Anthony Parker wants $5.4 million more for local operating expenses next year. He’s asking the Board of Education to approve a request for $48.5 million from county commissioners. ...He said that a research group from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill would be conducting a survey of Johnston County residents to measure their support for a tobacco-free policy, which would prohibit staff, students or visitors from using tobacco on any school property.

Let's put on a show
The Chapel Hill News
Four young local playwrights will see their scripts come to life in staged works this weekend featuring the talents of other local students ages 7-18. Young people are acting, directing, designing, stage managing, and coordinating publicity for the first annual Scriptwriting Festival, scheduled for Saturday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. at the Elizabeth Price Kenan Theatre in the Center for Dramatic Art on the UNC campus.

Grateful for care parents received (Letter to the editor)
The Chapel Hill News
This is a letter of gratitude. A thank you to UNC Hospitals, the rehabilitation centers here and the home health care providers -- all of whom helped in the care of my parents, Kenneth and Francys Putnam.

Couple Draws Federal Prison Time for Mortgage Scam
WRAL-TV (CBS, Raleigh)
A former UNC accounting technician and her husband are headed to federal prison for their roles in a mortgage scam, the U.S. Attorney's office says.

Issues and Trends

Educators spar over requirements
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Foreign language may be out now, but arts and vocational courses may still be in as graduation requirements for North Carolina high school students. ...Even if a foreign language is not required by the state, college-bound students will still take a foreign language to satisfy requirements for the University of North Carolina system and other four-year institutions.

Schools propose health center
The Chapel Hill News
Middle and high school students in central and northern Orange County may someday be able to get medical treatment for ailments from an ear ache to mental illness through the school district. ...Betty Compton, a family nurse practitioner at Orange High School who directs the district's UNC-funded Adolescents in Need Program, said such a center would help make sure students are treated.

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.