May 3, 2007

Carolina in the News

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

National Coverage

Drinking Alcohol Shrinks the Brain
HealthDay News
While it might help your heart, drinking even moderately could shrink your brain, U.S. researchers say. ..."This study corroborates a building story about the detrimental effects of alcohol on brain structure and function," said Dr. James Garbutt, a professor of psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Regional Coverage

Legislature sends tuition increase to Gov. Crist
The St. Petersburg Times (Fla.)
The House on Wednesday followed the Senate's lead, approving a dramatically different tuition structure that allows the University of Florida, the University of South Florida, and Florida State University to charge their undergraduates up to 40 percent more. ...Lawmakers' support for the differentiated model marks a dramatic shift in the state's approach to public universities, and it's a model that has proven successful in states like North Carolina, home to UNC-Chapel Hill.

New tools for autism
The Gazette (Cedar Rapids, Iowa)
Eighth grader Trevor Johnson stands in front of a dart board, blue rubber ball in one hand, dart in another. ...The techniques, based on a method copyrighted by the University of North Carolina, goes by the acronym of TEACCH -- for Treatment in Education of Autistic and related Communication-handicapped Children.

'Da Vinci Code' blurs the line between religious fact and fiction
San Bernandino County Sun (Calif.)
"The Da Vinci Code," the blockbuster novel with a film version opening this month, makes some controversial claims Jesus of Nazareth, a mere mortal, married Mary Magdalene and fathered her child. Their descendants live today. ...University of North Carolina religion chairman Bart Ehrman not a theological conservative found troubling Brown's assertion that, "All descriptions of documents in this novel are accurate."

State and Local Coverage

American Indian unit has director
The Chapel Hill Herald
Clara Sue Kidwell, director of Native American Studies and professor of history at the University of Oklahoma, has been hired as the first director of the new American Indian Center at UNC.
Related link: http://www.newsobserver.com/102/story/570114.html
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/may07/kidwell050207.html

Faculty picks professor for award
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Stephen F. Weiss, professor of computer science at UNC-Chapel Hill has been honored by his peers with the 2007 Thomas Jefferson Award.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/apr07/jeffersonaward043007.html

Wider UNC smoking ban sought
The Herald-Sun (Durham)/The Chapel Hill Herald
Permission to smoke on parts of the UNC campus should be snuffed out, the university's employee forum decided on Wednesday. ..."People can smoke," UNC Employee Forum chairman Ernie Patterson. "I want them to move far enough away so I'm not affected by it."
Related link: http://www.wchl1360.com/details.html?id=3562

Guilford College unveils sustainability programs
Yes! Weekly (Greensboro)
At Guilford College, the quest for sustainability starts in the bathroom. ... In North Carolina both UNC-Chapel Hill and Warren Wilson College have signed the commitment, but so far no colleges in the Triad have followed suit.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/jun06/carbon062706.htm

Transit panel has pedal to metal
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Think fast. That's the mission statement for 29 Triangle residents who met Wednesday for the first time as an advisory panel asked to figure out the region's long-term priorities for major rail and bus transit service. ..."There's no obvious central, single core around which transportation would function," said Carolyn Elfland, an associate vice chancellor at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Menace in your yard
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
It may be the most dangerous place you venture in the great outdoors this summer. ...North Carolina leads the nation in incidences of spotted fever. "The climate and the animals here make it attractive for that tick," says Dr. Wes Wallace, a wilderness medicine specialist with UNC Hospitals.

Other summer perils
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Ticks aren't the only potential scourge of summer. Here are a few other things to think about when you head outside. ...Also, make sure you're replenishing salt lost from sweat. A simple remedy, says Dr. Wes Wallace with UNC Hospitals: Add a teaspoon of salt to your water.

Mono meals eschew variety (Commentary)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
What would you think of eating a cantaloupe for lunch? How about half of a watermelon or a big bowl of fresh green beans for dinner? Welcome to the concept of "mono meals." ...Suzanne Havala Hobbs is a registered dietitian and a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Health Policy at UNC.

Morrisville's Ercole teams up again with Oregon biotech
The Triangle Business Journal
Ercole Biotech Inc., a Morrisville-based startup, again has turned to AVI BioPharma Inc. to help develop drugs that combat genetic disorders. Ercole, a seven-employee spinoff from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, said Wednesday that it will work with Portland, Ore.-based AVI to develop treatments for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, or DMD, and beta thalassemia.

Issues and Trends

Appeals Next in Cheating Scandal
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Duke University's Fuqua School of Business is gearing for several weeks of appeals expected from students found guilty of violating the honor code, while other business schools carefully watch Duke's cheating scandal. ... On Wednesday, Steve Jones, dean of the Kenan-Flagler Business School at UNC-Chapel Hill, sent an e-mail message to students warning them about cheating.

The numbers don't lie: The sports boosters win (Opinion column)
The Charlotte Observer
If you want an up-close look at how taxpayers get the shaft when big money and special interests muck up politics, try this number: $5.1 million. ...Citizens for Higher Education, a political action committee, backed it. That select group, funded by alumni and supporters of UNC Chapel Hill, prevailed.
Related link: http://www.charlotte.com/409/story/107923.html

Appeals court rules in favor of temporary state workers in N.C.
The Associated Press (N.C.)
Temporary state employees who said they deserved the benefits of permanent employees after working for more than 12 months can sue the state, according to a ruling from the state Court of Appeals. ...Of the 94,502 employees of state agencies and the University of North Carolina system, 3,238 were considered temporary as of March 31, according to the Office of State Personnel.

Love Puts New Imprint On Old Course
WRAL-TV (CBS, Raleigh)
Davis Love III stood on the par-4 fourth tee on Tuesday and eyed a bunker down the far right side of the fairway. ...The Club at Irish Creek course is designed to support the $1.5 billion North Carolina Research Campus, being spearheaded by Dole Food Co. owner David Murdock and University of North Carolina system partners to help advance studies in fields from crop production to prevention of cancer.

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.