A Sampling of Clips
for Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, 2010

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

Parents' Drinking May Be Risk Factor for SIDS
FOX News, Sept. 29 -- Parents and caretakers who drink alcohol may put infants at a higher risk for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), new research suggests. Researchers at UC San Diego found that SIDS cases occur 33 percent more often on New Year's Day than any other day of the year, which is also when more people drink alcohol than at any other time of year. More

Brain Surgery Through Your Eye Socket?!
MSNBC, Sept. 30 -- Instead of sawing through your skull, neurosurgeons have found another way of getting at your brain -- tunneling through your eye socket. Surgeons make a tiny incision behind or through the eyelid, then make a small hole through the eye socket to reach the brain. The new approach, pioneered by surgeons at UC San Diego and the University of Washington Medical Center, protects important arteries and the nerves for sight and smell, according to a news release from UC San Diego. The new technique -- called transorbital neuroendoscopic surgery, or TONES -- works for patients with cerebral spinal fluid leaks, optic nerve decompression, cranial base fractures and removal of tumors. More

5 Surprising Skin Mistakes That Can Age You
MSNBC, Sept. 29 -- What you don't know — or think you do know — about your skin can sap its youthful luster. One particularly dangerous misconception: After a certain point, the damage is done — and can't be erased. In reality, there are lots of simple, effective ways to minimize fine lines, erase brown spots, and firm up sagging skin. (Quotes Mark G. Rubin, MD, an assistant professor of dermatology at UC San Diego and author of "Your Skin, Younger.") More

Exposed: Global Warming Deniers
The Huffington Post, Sept. 29 --  If the world's top climatologists are all convinced that the burning of fossil fuels is causing dangerous global warming, why do the media keep giving equal time to deniers? (Mentions “Merchants of Doubt: How a Handful of Scientists Obscured the Truth on Issues from Tobacco Smoke to Global Warming,” co-authored by Naomi Oreskes, professor of history and science studies at UC San Diego) More

Closeted Discoverers: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Scientists
Science, Sept. 30 -- Think “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” applies only to the military? This too happens in the sciences, at all levels, from academia and industry to professional societies. Below are some of the ways that lesbian, bisexual, gay, and transgender scientists conceal part of their identity and the resources that this “invisible” army uses to thrive. (Mentions research by sociology doctoral students at UC San Diego Erin Cech and Tom Waidzunas) More

BP Research Funds to be Handled by Gulf Governors
Los Angeles Times, Sept. 30 -- BP  and the governors of the five Gulf Coast states announced plans Wednesday to funnel a promised $500 million in research funds through an organization run by the governors, not the nation's scientific community. (Mentions the Scripps Institution of Oceanography) More

Similar story in
Chicago Tribune

UCSD Receives Top Ranks In Doctoral Programs
KPBS, Sept. 30 — UC San Diego beat UCLA and more than 200 other graduate schools for three of the top doctoral programs in the nation. UCSD’s Biological Sciences, Bioengineering and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography all ranked number one in their fields in the United States. More

UCSD Couple's Healthy Eating Game Wins National Prize
North County Times, Sept. 30 – Aaron Coleman and his wife, Jesica Oratowski-Coleman, both UC San Diego researchers, found out Wednesday that their game, "Food Buster," beat out 95 other submissions to win the competition's popular vote. They received their award at a ceremony in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building next to the White House, and got a chance to show off the game to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and U.S. Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra. More

Similar story in
La Jolla Light

Meg Whitman Employed Undocumented Worker for 9 Years
Miami Herald, Sept. 30 -- In a disclosure that rattled the governor's race, Republican gubernatorial nominee Meg Whitman acknowledged Wednesday that she employed an illegal immigrant as a housekeeper for nine years until she began running for governor last year. (Quotes UC San Diego political scientist Thad Kousser) More

Similar story in
Sacramento Bee

For Second Boxer-Fiorina Debate, Most of the Pressure is Off
The Christian Science Monitor, Sept. 29 -- As Sen. Barbara Boxer (D) and challenger Carly Fiorina hold their second debate – this one only on radio and to a limited audience – most of the pressure of a live TV encounter is off, say experts. (Quotes UC San Diego political scientist Thad Kousser) More

California Current Vital to Marine Life
CBS 8, Sept. 29) - The ocean's ecosystem affects our everyday lives, from our food to coastal erosion to the weather we experience. Scripps Institution of Oceanography just received a $5.6 million grant to research currents and how they affect the ocean's ecosystem. More

State Leaders, Scientists to Discuss State of San Diego's Water Supply
San Diego Union-Tribune, Sept. 30 -- Elected officials and scientists are discussing the San Diego region's water supply and ways to diversify it at a legislative summit on Thursday. The summit, from 7:50 a.m. to noon, is at the UC San Diego Faculty Club, in La Jolla. More

US Diplomat in San Diego for Gandhi Memorial Lecture
KPBS, Sept. 30 -- Robert O. Blake Jr., Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, is in San Diego to deliver The 27th Annual Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Lecture at UC San Diego. More

* Subscribe with In the News and receive our clips automatically