A Sampling of Clips for January 8^th, 2010

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

Streamlined Stem Cell Procedure May Speed Up Research
U.S. News, Jan. 7 -- A new way of genetically modifying human embryonic stem cells would enable rapid development of stem cell lines that could be used for research into genetic diseases, say U.S. scientists.The technique, developed by a team at UCSD uses bacterial artificial chromosomes (BACs) to insert defective copies of genes into stem cells. More

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Legalizing Unauthorized Immigrants Would Help Economy, Study Says
CNN, Jan. 7-- Legalization of the more than 11 million unauthorized immigrants in the United States would raise wages, increase consumption, create jobs and generate more tax revenue, two policy institutes say in a joint report Thursday. The report by the Center for American Progress and the American Immigration Council estimates that "comprehensive immigration reform that legalizes currently unauthorized immigrants and creates flexible legal limits on future immigration" would yield at least $1.5 trillion in added U.S. gross domestic product over a 10-year period. (Mentions long-term study conducted by UCSD which found that 92 to 98 percent of unauthorized immigrants keep trying to cross the border until they succeed) More

Obama Agenda: Reviews of the Review
MSNBC, Jan. 8 -- President Obama on Thursday ordered intelligence agencies to take a series of steps to streamline how terrorism threats are pursued and analyzed, saying the government had to respond aggressively to the failures that allowed a Nigerian man to ignite an explosive mixture on a commercial jetliner on Christmas Day. The president also directed the Homeland Security Department to speed the installation of $1 billion in advanced-technology equipment for the screening of passengers, including body scanners at American airports and to work with international airports to see that they upgrade their own equipment to protect passengers on flights headed to the United States.” (Quotes Gary Jacobson, a political scientist at UCSD). More

Percussionists Go From Background to Podium
New York Times, Column, Dec. 27 -- I have been thinking a lot lately about percussion and percussionists. It is not so much because I’m fascinated with the kaleidoscopic array of noises and textures they create — though I am. I’ve been pondering the way percussion has gradually grabbed the spotlight over the last century, and how percussionists have been asserting themselves in the broader musical scene as composers and conductors. (Mentions UCSD professor of music Steven Schick) More

Cuban Revolution Swings from Golf to Art
San Francisco Chronicle, Dec. 31 -- The story behind the Cuban opera in progress "Revolution of Forms" is proof that books matter, people still rely on newspapers, and art and politics make for bad bedfellows. The idea for the opera, based on the true story of the National Art Schools commissioned by Fidel Castro and Che Guevara, arose from a 2002 newspaper article by Chronicle Urban Design Writer John King.  (Mentions UCSD professor of music Anthony Davis) More

Nobel Laureate’s call to Researchers
The Hindu, Jan. 1 -- Nobel laureate Roger Yonchien Tsien, American biochemist and professor at the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, UCSD, has urged young scientists to pursue a multidisciplinary approach to solve the scientific problems before them. Delivering the inaugural Erudite Lecture Series organized by Mahatma Gandhi University here, Prof Tsien called upon his younger colleagues to pursue their work with personal liking and commitment. “I was moved by colours which stimulated me to probe into the fluoro-science and I tried to solve a problem faced by the medical community to segregate normal cells from cancer cells,” he told the academic community which had gathered. More

El Niño May Still Sive Us a Wet Winter, Weather Experts Say
Sacramento Bee, Jan. 8 -- El Niño was predicted to dominate the weather this winter, but a look out the window suggests that forecast has fizzled. Sacramento rainfall so far this winter is merely normal, and the Sierra Nevada snowpack is only 84 percent of average. But don't give up on El Niño just yet. Several weather experts predict El Niño will soon crank open the faucet and blow away the cold, gray skies that have gripped the Sacramento region for weeks. They expect much wetter weather through March. (Quotes Tim Barnett, a climate researcher at UCSD’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography) More

35 Under 35 San Diego Community Leaders: Part One
San Diego News Network, Jan. 8 -- As the story goes, young people supposedly didn’t really become involved in their communities or in policy-making until the 2008 presidential elections, when then-candidate Barack Obama mobilized them. We beg to differ though, because we have 35 San Diegans under 35 to prove it. List includes (List includes Eleyce Northcraft a student at UCSD and refugees’ rights advocate) More

Art Professor's Work in Exhibit
Del Mar Times, Dec 17. -- The work of Anya Gallaccio, a visual arts professor at UCSD, is featured in "Eating the Universe. Food in Art," exhibit at the Kunsthalle Düsseldorf in Germany, through Feb. 28."Eat Art," a term coined by Daniel Spoerri for art made with and involving food, has its institutionalized origins in Düsseldorf. Two years after opening his restaurant at the Burgplatz, the Swiss artist founded the Eat Art Gallery in 1970 and inspired numerous artists to produce various editions made of edible materials and food wastes. More

How to Land a San Diego Job in Urban Planning
San Diego News Network, Jan. 7 -- Urban planners have a vast array of duties, largely dependent upon their employer.  Typically, planners develop long and short-term plans to best utilize land for the growth and revitalization of urban, suburban, and rural communities, while helping local officials make decisions concerning social, economic, and environmental issues. (Mentions the Urban Planning & Development certificate at UCSD’s Extension) More

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