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Sept. 13, 2005Carolina in the News
Here is a sampling of links and notes about Carolina
people and programs cited recently in the media:International Coverage
Distant cosmic explosion detected
Reuters News Service
Astronomers said on Monday they have detected a cosmic explosion at the very edge of the visible universe, a 13-billion-year-old blast that could help them learn more about the earliest stars. ..."We are finally starting to see the remnants of some of the oldest objects in the universe," said Daniel Reichart of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Reichart led the team that measured the distance of the blast from Earth.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/sep05/reichartsoar091205.htm
Additional International coverage: BBC News, Reuters News Service, Voice of America, Science Daily, Independent Online, Independent Online - South Africa (Sapa AFP), China View (Xinhuanet)Smile ... it'll work for you: Reading facial expressions
could help navigate the corporate maze
The Edmonton Journal (Edmonton, Alberta Canada)
Facial expressions matter. No one knows this better than Paul Ekman, a psychologist whose research and expertise on facial expressions is all the rage right now, corporately speaking. ...He cites former U.S. president Franklin Roosevelt, who was notorious for conveying "contagious enthusiasm" to those around him, and a University of North Carolina study that showed banktellers "who smiled more and made eye contact induced a better mood in their customers, and the customers went away feeling more satisfied."
National Coverage
Satellite Detects Massive Explosion
The Washington Post
Astronomers using NASA’s Swift satellite said Monday that they have detected the most distant explosion ever discovered in the universe, the collapse into a black hole of a massive star about 12.6 billion light-years from Earth. ...University of North Carolina astronomer Daniel Reichart, who led the team that tracked the explosion, said Swift relayed news of the burst about 9 p.m. Fort Wayne time Sept. 4.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/sep05/reichartsoar091205.htmAstronomers Discover One of the Most Distant Objects Ever Sighted, a Gamma-Ray Burst at the Universe's Edge
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Pushing back the veils of time and space, astronomers announced on Monday that they had captured images of the most distant explosion ever witnessed, a cosmic flare emanating from the outer edge of the universe. ...The initial discovery was made by Daniel E. Reichart, an assistant professor of astrophysics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Joshua Haislip, a junior there.
Note: Subscription required.
Additional National coverage: Indianapolis Star, Los Angeles Times, Seattle Times, Chicago Sun-Times, Nature.com, Discovery Channel, USA Today, ABC Online and Space.comMetabolic syndrome guidelines expand
USA Today
"Metabolic syndrome" doesn't have quite the same ring as Alzheimer's disease or cancer. Most people probably have never heard of it. ..."Our paper goes through gory detail about all the ways metabolic syndrome isn't ready for prime time yet," says one of the statement's authors, John Buse of the University of North Carolina School of Medicine at Chapel Hill.
Toxic talk in workplace costly to employers
The Chicago Sun-Times
As the latest in our occasional series on The Decline of Civility in Business, let's look at a trend that epitomizes the entire theme: verbal abuse in the workplace. ...He points to numerous surveys, including a recent poll by the University of North Carolina Business School reporting that 78 percent of workers believe incivility in the office and factory to be much worse than 10 years ago.
Regional Coverage
UNL hemophilia research gets $10 million boost
The Lincoln Journal Star (Nebraska)
A research project that has bubbled on the front burner of University of Nebraska-Lincoln chemical engineering professor William Velander for 17 years has received a nearly $10 million boost. ...The university is collaborating with two other universities — the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Colorado State University — and with two private companies, LifeSci Partners of California and ProGenetics LLC of Virginia.
Related Link: http://www.dailynebraskan.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2005/09/13/4326542134b7bSan Antonio 'stood up to help'
WFAA-TV (Dallas)
The tears well up in Betty Moore's eyes, then rush down her face. ...Mimi Chapman, a professor at the University of North Carolina, decided she would help after seeing news reports of Katrina evacuees being airlifted to her hometown of San Antonio. She flew here after her last class Sept. 6 and volunteered with the Salvation Army to provide a play area for the hundreds of children living at the Building 1536 shelter.
State & Local Coverage
Blast ID'd as oldest yet seen
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
A young UNC-Chapel Hill astronomer has identified the oldest explosion ever observed in the universe, lighting the way to new studies into the origins of the cosmos. Daniel Reichart, with help from a UNC junior, detected a big blast Sept. 3. He thinks it happened 12.8 billion years ago. That's only 900 million years after the Big Bang that astronomers say gave birth to the universe.
UNC key to making space find
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
In the warp of outer space, the color and intensity of light are markers of time and distance as clear to astronomers and cosmologists as the rings of a tree are to woodsmen. ...In a teleconference with media, UNC assistant professor of physics and astronomy Daniel Reichart and colleagues said that within 20 seconds of the event's detection, Swift notified astronomers throughout the world via a special Internet listserv.
N.C. researchers collaborating on hemophilia research
The Associated Press (N.C.)
A hemophilia B research project that could drastically decrease the price of treatment received a $9.98 million grant on Monday. ...The university is collaborating with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Colorado State University, and with LifeSci Partners of California and ProGenetics LLC of Virginia.
Donations for Hurricane Relief
North Carolina Public Radio, WUNC-FM
Bob Adler, professor at the Kenan-Flagler Business School at UNC-Chapel Hill, was featuered on WUNC-FM news. North Carolina companies large and small are soliciting donations for hurricane victims. As Lorne Matalon reports, companies want to send the message that it’s possible to make money and be good corporate citizens. Adler discusses the reasons why companies are giving to Katrina relief efforts.
UNC health team returns from Gulf Coast
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
The air was hot, the stench pungent, the desperation palpable. Amid all this ruin, Ed Wilson learned that the least fortunate among us are the most grateful. Wilson, 28, is an emergency room nurse at UNC Hospitals, one of eight UNC medical staffers who recently returned from a nine-day stint at a makeshift medical clinic in rural Mississippi.
UNC Hospitals Workers Tell Tales Of Katrina Recovery
NBC 17
Health care workers from the University of North Carolina Hospitals returned Monday from the Gulf Coast, where they had spent much of the past two weeks treating victims of Hurricane Katrina. The doctors, nurses and other staff set up a field hospital between Biloxi, Miss., and New Orleans, becoming the only hospital in a six-county area.
Roberts' Confirmation Hearings
"The State of Things," WUNC-FM
Michael Gerhardt, professor of constitutional law at UNC-Chapel Hill, was featured on today's (Sept. 13) edition of "The State of Things." With the Supreme Court confirmation hearings for John Roberts going on this week in Washington, guests looked at the nature of hearings, how we watch them and their importance. "The State of Things" is the statewide public affairs program airing live at noon and rebroadcast at 9 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays and 6 a.m. on Saturdays.
Durham students are on the move
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
With chuckles and a little heavy breathing Monday afternoon, some Durham school board members got a quick lesson on one of the tools the district is using to get kids active and combat childhood obesity. ...In 2000, just one in five North Carolina adolescents took gym class at school, according to a UNC-Chapel Hill study. Meanwhile, obesity rates among preschoolers and adolescents in the nation has doubled in the past 30 years and tripled for kids ages 6 to 11, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Issues & Trends
Impact of biotech hub may reach all of N.C.
The Charlotte Observer
California billionaire David Murdock announced his $1 billion biotech campus Monday, saying its impact will extend throughout North Carolina and beyond. ...The campus includes a Dole-N.C. State Institute for Advanced Fruit and Vegetable Science, a Dole analytical lab and a UNC-Chapel Hill Nutrition Institute.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/sep05/uncnutritioninstitute091205.htmTransforming vision (Editorial)
The Charlotte Observer
...In an announcement Monday in Kannapolis, Mr. Murdock described how the $1 billion North Carolina Research Campus -- a partnership with UNC Chapel Hill, N.C. State University and UNC Charlotte, among others -- would conduct cutting-edge research on biotechnology. The development would marry economic development, institutional research, job training, science education and commerce and housing in what could become the perfect example of a public-private partnership.
Murdock outlines research campus
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
In the shadow of the mill that built and broke a town, a California billionaire Monday promised rebirth. David H. Murdock, owner of Dole Food, gave his vision for a 350-acre research campus at the site of the former Pillowtex textile plant in Kannapolis. He detailed a partnership with the University of North Carolina and a $700 million investment he said could create 35,000 jobs in five years.
Related Link: http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2005/09/12/daily4.html?page=2Research campus plans unveiled
The Daily Tar Heel
Rising slowly from his seat, David Murdock, 81, stepped to the microphone and gazed out at the immense crowd. ...The UNC Institute for Excellence in Nutrition will be established by UNC-Chapel Hill to study the impact of diet on the brain, obesity and cancer. “We’re hoping that this will be a world-class research institute,” said Steven Zeisel, professor of nutrition at UNC.'You build quality,' president believes
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Wake Forest University is committed to its students' intellectual and moral development and won't become a campus where athletics is the tail that wags the dog, says Nathan Hatch, the university's new president. ...Wake Forest has risen in reputation from a regional school to a nationally ranked institution, recently rated 27th by U.S. News & World Report, tied with UNC-Chapel Hill and Tufts University. Wake Forest has about 6,500 students and a 10-to-1 student-faculty ratio.
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.
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