A Sampling of Clips for May 4, 2010

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

Academies Form IPCC Review Panel
The Washington Post, May 4 -- A group of the world's science academies announced the makeup of a 12-member panel that will conduct an independent review of the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which has come under fire for mistakes in its 2007 report to policymakers on global warming. Committee members include Nobel laureate Mario J. Molina (co-winner of 1995 Nobel Prize in Chemistry), a professor at UC San Diego, and creator of a center in Mexico City for strategic studies of energy and the environment. More

Saudi School Aims to Save the Planet
NPR, May 4 -- How much would it cost to solve some of the world's biggest problems? King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia says about $10 billion — that's the endowment he's given to the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, or KAUST, a huge research facility devoted to solving some of the major problems facing the planet. (Mentions UC San Diego) More

UCSD Gets $15.3M for Health Records Project
10News, May 4 -- UC San Diego was awarded $15.3 million in federal economic stimulus funds for a health information technology pilot project, the White House announced Tuesday. More

UCSD Researchers Outline Plan to Limit Global Warming
KPBS, May  3 -- UC San Diego climate researchers have outlined three steps countries should take in order to avoid the global warming threshold. The threshold is a point beyond which many scientists believe climate change will present unmanageable negative consequences for society. More

Decision Could Boost Stem Cell Research
San Diego Union-Tribune, May 4 -- Potentially opening the way to greater freedom in stem cell research, the U.S. patent office has reversed a key decision that enabled a Wisconsin research foundation to maintain patents on all embryonic stem cells used for research within the United States. (Quotes Larry Goldstein, director of the stem cell research program at UC San Diego) More

Watch UCSD Earthquake Test
San Diego Union-Tribune, May 3 -- Scientists at UC San Diego have been using the university's outdoor shake table -- the largest of its kind in the world -- to simulate the potential impact large earthquakes might have on a variety of buildings, including some that are commonly found San Diego County and other parts of Southern California. More

UCSD Black Student, Faculty Leaders Report ‘Slow But Steady’ Progress
KPBS, May  4 -- It's been four months since UC San Diego was rocked by a series of racially-charged incidents targeting black students on campus. Since then, top ranking UCSD officials have agreed to a litany of terms and conditions aimed at making the campus more diverse and tolerant. Black student leaders say there's been slow but steady progress. More

Same Old Song (Not)
San Diego Union-Tribune, May 3 -- Birds are not born with a song in their hearts or their heads. They must learn them from other birds. So naturally, it seems only reasonable that these songs evolve, with each generation tweaking tunes to fit their times. And, in fact, this is what happens, UC San Diego researchers say, though the rate of song-change appears to vary with species. More

One Flu Over: Lessons of the H1N1 Pandemic
San Diego Union-Tribune, May 3 -- The 2009-10 flu season is basically over (at least in the Northern Hemisphere), but the bug will be back. The current strain — or a new, mutated version — will return when the next flu season begins in late fall. We asked local experts — scientists, doctors and public health officials, including Dr. Mark Sawyerm, professor of clinical pediatrics UC San Diego School of Medicine— to take stock of H1N1, of what happened — and what did not; what was learned and what remains to be discovered — and done. More

Car Culture Sees Decals as Mobile Memorials
San Diego Union-Tribune, May 3 -- Southern Californians have always had deep relationships with their vehicles. So perhaps it’s not strange that sedans, SUVs and pickups also have become forums for displaying sadness, for showing familial bonds, for paying tribute to the departed. (Quotes Nicholas Christenfeld, a professor of psychology at UC San Diego) More

Crime Rate Across San Diego County Drops Again in 2009
North County Times, May 3 -- The rate of violent and property crimes across San Diego County dropped in 2009 to its lowest point in more than two decades, according to a report released Monday. (Quotes John Skrentny, a UC San Diego sociology professor who has studied crime rates) More

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