A Sampling of Clips for April 30, 2010

* UCSD faculty and staff may obtain a copy of an article by e-mailing the University Communications Office

Vitamin D: Obese and ‘Uniform’ Risks
Science News, April 29 --  Although vitamin D insufficiency has reached what might be considered epidemic proportions, it’s failed to move onto the radar screens of most physicians, much less consumers. A host of new studies now link excess weight with a deficiency in this, the sunshine vitamin. But that wouldn’t explain why female soldiers become increasing D-ficient during basic combat training. For them, an Army study suggests, the problem may trace to what they wear. (Quotes Cheryl Rock of UC San Diego) More 

UCD Grad Student Shares Prize for Potentially Lifesaving Invention
Sacramento Bee, April 29 -- A student team that includes a UC Davis graduate student has won a national technology competition for inventing cell-phone software that will help people in developing countries identify vascular diseases in children. Wilson To, 24, who is pursuing a master's degree at the UC Davis veterinary school, and the two UC San Diego students on his team are taking their invention to Poland this summer where they will compete for a $25,000 prize with student winners from more than 100 countries. More

Do Religious People Spend
More Time With Their Children? Valerie Ramey Answers
Science and Religion, April 30 -- Unfortunately, most of the U.S. studies we used for our recent research don’t ask parents about their religion. (They ask parents how much time they spent in religious activities in a particular day, but that is very indirect.) However, the Canadian Time Use studies do ask about religion. Thus, I can summarize some results I found from the 2005 Canadian Time Use survey. (Valerie Ramey is a UC San Diego economist) More 

3 San Diego Scholars Elected to National Academy
San Diego Union-Tribune, April 29 -- Three UC San Diego scholars have been elected to the National Academy of Sciences, the elite honorific and research society founded during the Lincoln administration to advise the president and Congress on science and technology. More

Faults Found Near Sea Added to Map
The Desert Sun, April 29 -- A map released this week by the California Geological Survey highlights for the first time faults under and near the Salton Sea, officials and academics said. Researchers from UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography studied the area from 2006 to 2009 and announced last summer they discovered more than a dozen small faults underneath the sea using a sonar system. More

Doubt for Sale
Sacramento News & Review, April 29 -- Merchants of Doubt, by Naomi Oreskes and Erik M. Conway, frames its title from an internal memo from Big Tobacco: “Doubt is our product since it is the best means of competing with the ‘body of fact’ that exists in the mind of the general public.” Among other things, they trace the history of the deniers back to a group of scientists better known as the George C. Marshall Institute. Oreskes is on the UC San Diego faculty. More

Racial Slur Found on Dorm Door at SDSU
San Diego Union-Tribune, April 29 — San Diego State University authorities are investigating a racial slur that was scrawled Wednesday night on the dorm-room door of a black student. The message was written on a dry-erase board hanging from the door of a girl’s room at Zura Hall, officials said. (Mentions UC San Diego) More

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San Diego 6

Fall of Saigon Bittersweet for Vietnamese Refugee
KPBS, April 29 -- It was called Operation Frequent Wind and many of the officers and sailors who served on the Midway during April of 1975 are gathering here, joined by some of the Vietnamese people who were evacuated. The actions of the Midway crew that day are proudly remembered, but not all of the memories of that day are good. Joining us now is Dzung Le, who first set foot on board the Midway on April 30, 1975, after escaping with his family as North Vietnamese troops took over Saigon. Dr. Le now lives in San Diego and is a pathologist at UC San Diego. More

U.C. Berkeley Senate Upholds Veto
of Divest-from-Israel Measure, San Diego Debates Similar Bill
JWeekly, April 29 -- The divest-from-Israel saga at U.C. Berkeley seems to take a new twist and turn every week — and now the drama is even spreading, as UC San Diego has introduced and voted on similar legislation. More

Similar story in
Jewish Telegraphic Agency

Lobbyists Set to Disable Finance Reform
The San Diego Daily Transcript, April 29 -- What a surprise to hear a Washington career bureaucrat speak openly on an issue currently politically sensitive for the Obama administration. The topic, "Plans and Prospects for Financial Reform." The speaker, Elisse Walter, a Securities and Exchange Commission commissioner. She spoke at UC San Diego. More

Moores UCSD Cancer Center Hosts 29th Annual Gala
The San Diego Daily Transcript, April 29 -- Great food and a great cause will come together on May 15 for the 29th annual Celebrity Chefs Cook Gala at the Sheraton San Diego Hotel and Marina. The black-tie celebration, hosted by UC San Diego, will bring award-winning regional and nationwide chefs to prepare their signature hors d'oeuvres paired with fine wine, all to benefit the Moores UCSD Cancer Center. More

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