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May 31, 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
Light sticks may lure turtles to fishing lines
The Hindu (Chennai, Madras)
All sea turtles are endangered species. A recent estimate published in the journal Ecology Letters suggests 200,000 loggerhead and 50,000 leatherback turtles may die each year in commercial fishery longlines. Total populations have declined in the past 20 years. ... "Juvenile turtles are indiscriminant eaters and bite nearly everything small that they encounter," said Ken Lohmann, UNC-Chapel Hill professor of biology and senior author of the study.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/may07/turtlelights050407.htmlNational Coverage
An Answer to Help Clear His Fog
The New York Times
For the past seven years, Mel Renfro, a former star defensive back for the Dallas Cowboys and a member of the National Football League’s Hall of Fame, has wondered why he wakes up most mornings with a malaise that seems only to be getting worse. ...A study by the University of North Carolina’s Center for the Study of Retired Athletes, to be published today by the journal of the American College of Sports Medicine, claims that the rate of diagnosed clinical depression among retired N.F.L. players is strongly correlated with the number of concussions they had sustained on the football field.Concussions Tied to Depression in Ex-N.F.L. Players
The New York Times
The rate of diagnosed clinical depression among retired National Football League players is strongly correlated with the number of concussions they sustained, according to a study to be published today. The study was conducted by the University of North Carolina’s Center for the Study of Retired Athletes and based on a general health survey of 2,552 retired N.F.L. players. It corroborates other findings regarding brain trauma and later-life depression in other subsets of the general population, but runs counter to longtime assertions by the N.F.L. that concussions in football have no long-term effects.Concussions Linked to Depression in Retired Pro Football Players
HealthDay News
There's a strong association between depression in former National Football League players and the number of concussions they suffered while playing, say University of North Carolina researchers who surveyed 2,552 retired NFL players.
Related link: http://www.contracostatimes.com/sports/ci_6027815Employers Beef Up Their Summer Hiring
The Wall Street Journal
The chances of landing a summer job -- be it a paid internship or a stint as a drive-in carhop -- are brighter this year than last, despite predictions of a slowdown in the economy. ...The job pays $12 an hour, she says. "Internships are great and all, but they don't pay near as much as these other summer jobs," says Ms. Groves, who just finished her sophomore year at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.Howdy, Partner
University Business
In deciding how to wrangle revenue from a dwindling source, some IHEs have inked deals that bring together wireless providers and university and college administrators. ...Rave has focused on promoting the benefits of its mobile phone program, which bundles applications and services. More than 100 IHEs are reportedly either implementing the program or in discussions with the vendor. Those that have signed up include Georgetown University (D.C.), The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and California State University, Monterey Bay.Premier Building Show reflects decline in sales
The Examiner
Numbers are down this year at PCBC The Premier Building Show, a major homebuilders conference at Moscone Center that opened Wednesday, a reflection of declining new-home construction after previously hot sales. ...Economist James Smith, senior fellow at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, said the nation is in the midst of a mild recession and can expect to see continued slumps in home sales until a recovery this fall.Regional Coverage
R&D spending by state's Big Three universities rivals top U.S. institutions
The Detroit News
Michigan's Big Three universities rival the country's top research institutions in spending on research and development, and act as an economic engine for the state, but they receive significantly less in supplemental funding than their competitors nationwide. ...The report found that Michigan's growth rate for research and development trails competitors at North Carolina's Research Triangle (Duke, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill and North Carolina State) and Penn State/Pittsburgh/Carnegie Mellon in Pennsylvania.Michigan Aerotropolis
Metromode (Mich.)
The word, a curious portmanteau, seems almost silly at first blush. But drop it in the presence of anyone actively engaged with the revitalization of southeast Michigan, and you'll find that the "aerotropolis" is entirely serious. The theory behind it, widely accredited to University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Professor John Kasarda, runs something like this: Cities of the past rose at hubs of transportation — seaports, rail stations, and most recently, highways; accordingly, cities of the future will sprout around airports, the nuclei of global travel.State and Local Coverage
UNC to draw up economic plan
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The Chatham County Commissioners have picked UNC-Chapel Hill's Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise to create an economic development strategic plan for the county. The work will cost $154,000, according to the institute's proposal.
Carolina North to be part relocation
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Within the next 15 years, university officials expect to build the equivalent of two Southpoint malls at Carolina North, the future scientific research campus planned for the current site of the Horace Williams Airport.
UNC Media Advisory: http://www.unc.edu/news/media/2007/cnorthadvisory052407.htmlHow should N.C. face climate change?
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
On Sunday, The News & Observer will begin a series on the current and potential effects of global warming on our state. The N&O has asked Dr. Douglas J. Crawford-Brown of UNC-Chapel Hill to answer your questions. Crawford-Brown is director of UNC's Institute for the Environment.Botanist still going strong
The Chapel Hill Herald
For his 98th birthday on Wednesday, Rogers McVaugh got together with some of his friends and colleagues in Coker Hall, on UNC's campus. ...UNC has a few dozen specimens collected by McVaugh in the herbarium, which is a plant library of sorts -- a collection of dry plant specimens. Most were collected in the 1930s and 1940s.Favorite vegetarian dishes come from easy recipes (Commentary)
The Charlotte Observer
After "healthy," what most readers want in their cookbooks is "easy." That's what many of you tell me when you ask for vegetarian recipes you can make at home. ...Suzanne Havala Hobbs is a registered dietitian and clinical assistant professor in Department of Health Policy at UNC-Chapel Hill.Parents can help kids get fit (Commentary)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
It's true that exercise is a key to weight control. Not many of us, though, can climb enough stairs or walk long enough to offset a steady diet of chicken biscuits and Krispy Kremes. That's as true for adults as it is for kids. ...Suzanne Havala Hobbs is a registered dietitian and clinical assistant professor in Department of Health Policy at UNC-Chapel Hill.Local hero
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Who: Alexandra Fox, Raleigh; What she does: Helped create a Web site to assist victims of domestic violence. The site, www.ibiblio.org/empower, was created by Fox and three other students -- Meredith Rendall, Christie McDaniel and Janhavi Sheode. It took the students, who are pursuing master's degrees in library science at UNC-Chapel Hill, a year.Nestor Torres visits UNC-Chapel Hill's Charanga Carolina
The Independent Weekly (Durham)
Besides a taste for fine pork barbecue, Cuba and Carolina now have another thing in common: charanga. The Cuban charanga orchestra was born in the late 19th century, a creole blend of violins, woodwinds and Afro-Cuban percussion. Four years ago, ethnomusicologist David F. Garcia founded Charanga Carolina at UNC-Chapel Hill to introduce his students to Latin music from a different angle.Blood drive to be at Smith Center
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
The 19th annual Carolina Blood Drive will be held Tuesday from 7 a.m.-6 p.m. at the Dean E. Smith Center at UNC-Chapel Hill. The local and campus communities are invited.
UNC Event brief: http://www.unc.edu/news/briefs/2007/052907.htmlGood news (Opinion column)
The Independent Weekly
Just when it seems like everything's going to hell in a handbasket (or, these days, south on a Segway), something comes up to give us hope. ...Back on Jan. 17, we warned about the disturbing way the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was becoming "UNC Inc." Former med school Professor John Hammond warned of corporate business priorities replacing public-minded ones, resulting in skyrocketing tuition and a hospital system more interested in improving the bottom line than serving the state's indigent patients.Issues and Trends
Why Diversity Matters (Opinion-editorial column)
The Chronicle of Higher Education
During this frantic admissions season, it is easy for our applicants to think that the most important moment in their college career is when they rip open the mail to find out where they got in and where they didn't. But we in higher education understand that the admissions process has less to do with rewarding each student's past performance — although high performance is clearly essential — than it does with building a community of diverse learners who will thrive together and teach one another.Colleges asking about criminal backgrounds
The Daily Bulletin (Inland Valley, Calif.)
What might have seemed like a minor criminal infraction during your youth could cost you a shot at higher education. ...Last fall, officials from the University of North Carolina's 16-campus system developed a policy ordering criminal conviction background checks on certain students, primarily those who admitted involvement in a crime or who had unexplained gaps of time on their applications. The UNC application asks six questions, including whether any criminal charges are pending or if an applicant has ever pleaded no contest to a crime.Senate puts more in budget for UNC system
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
When the state House approved a budget three weeks ago, it called on the state's public universities to save $19 million by cutting 188 mid-level administrative positions. It proposed to give university professors a smaller pay raise than those for public school teachers and community college instructors. And it offered little more than seed money for several building projects at UNC campuses.
Related link: http://www.newsobserver.com/1565/story/585141.htmlSenate budget funds dental school
The Daily Record (Greenville)
A state budget funding East Carolina University's proposed dental school moved a step toward passage Wednesday. ...Terri Workman, interim associate dean of the ECU dental program, applauded the Senate bill for funding the school and a partner project at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. ECU and UNC have presented a joint plan to create the ECU school and build a $96 million expansion at the Chapel Hill school.
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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