A Sampling of Clips for Oct. 28, 2010

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

Is There a Liberal Gene?
Discovery Channel, Oct. 28 -- Is political ideology derived from a person's social environment or is it a result of genetic predisposition? It's an interaction of both, according to a recent study on our political leanings that boosts both sides of the nature versus nurture debate. Scientists at UC San Diego and Harvard University determined that people who carry a variant of the DRD4 gene are more likely to be liberals as adults, depending on the number of friendships they had during high school. They published their study in a recent issue of The Journal of Politics.  More

Similar stories in
The Telegraph, U.K.
National Review
KUSI
NBC San Diego
10News
San Diego 6

Fire Webcams Guard San Diego Backcountry
ABC 7, Los Angeles, Calif., Oct. 27 -- San Diego County firefighters have a new weapon: Webcams. The San Diego Union-Tribune reported Tuesday that about 50 webcams are broadcasting from mountaintops, including 16 high-resolution cameras installed over the past few weeks. The images are refreshed every two minutes. The cameras are tied into a research network at UC San Diego, which has webcams at other county sites. More

Similar stories on
KTVN, Reno, Nev.
CBS 13, Sacramento, Calif.
The Press-Enterprise, Riverside, Calif.
North County Times
KPBS

Parent-Only Programs Can Help Obese Kids Lose Weight: Study
BusinessWeek, Oct. 27 -- Treatments designed to tackle childhood obesity by enrolling just the parents in nutrition and exercise education programs are as effective as those that enlist both parents and children, new research suggests. Such parent-only programs are also generally cheaper and more practical for families, researchers say. "Our results showed that the parent-only group was not inferior in terms of child weight loss, parent weight loss and child physical activity," study author Kerri N. Boutelle, an associate professor of pediatrics and psychiatry at UC San Diego, said in a university news release. More

Similar story in
U.S. News & World Report

Public Pension Reform Key Issue in California Race
Reuters, Oct. 27 -- With decades of public service under his belt, 72-year-old California gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown joked last month that he is the best pension investment California has ever seen. But at an estimated half a trillion dollars, California's public pension shortfall is no laughing matter, and Brown quickly moved on to lay out serious solutions. (Quotes Vladimir Kogan, a doctoral student at UC San Diego) More

Whitman California Governor Bid Imperiled by Eroding Latino Voter Support
Bloomberg, Oct. 28 -- Meg Whitman wanted to portray a new Republican face to Latino voters. Then controversy erupted over the undocumented maid she fired, marring her outreach in the California governor race. (Quotes UC San Diego political scientist Thad Kousser) More

What Gets Done if the GOP Takes Over Capitol Hill
The Christian Science Monitor, Oct. 28 -- If Republicans capture one or both Houses of Congress in the midterm elections, it will almost certainly be seen as a setback for President Obama – a blow to any remaining big-ticket items on his legislative agenda and a repudiation of some already passed. But if history is any guide, Mr. Obama may actually benefit in some ways from having Republicans run Congress for the next two years. (Quotes UC San Diego political scientist Gary Jacobson) More

Newsom's Bid for Lieutenant Governor Aided by Giants' Success
San Jose Mercury News, Oct. 27 -- The San Francisco Giants' unlikely berth in the World Series has not only been a lift for the city's spirits - think Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" - and a bump for business. The ascent of the Giants is also good news for Mayor Gavin Newsom. (Quotes UC San Diego political scientist Thad Kousser) More

Environment Up for Discussion in California Attorney General Race
Sacramento Bee, Oct. 28 -- Democrat Kamala Harris accuses Steve Cooley of lacking political courage for not joining her in opposing the ballot measure to suspend California's crackdown on greenhouse gas emissions. Cooley blasts the San Francisco district attorney as a political idealogue and vows to defend whatever position voters take on Proposition 23. As the two campaign for attorney general, environmental protection is on the agenda. (Quotes UC San Diego political scientist Thad Kousser) More

Eat Less, Exercise More, Talk to a Counselor to Lose Weight
San Diego Union-Tribune, Oct. 27 -- When it comes to dieting, exercise and don't go it alone. That seems to be the message from two studies published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association. One of the studies was led by a UC San Diego researcher funded by Carlsbad-based Jenny Craig weight-loss company. The other was a University of Pittsburgh study funded by the Pennsylvania Department of Health. More

Bright Idea: Haim Steinbach on Shelving His Art at Louis Vuitton
ArtInfo, Oct. 26 -- For 40 years Haim Steinbach has been investigating the thin line between object and artwork, and the hierarchy we impose on the things that surround us. Steinbach, who is on the UC San Diego faculty, was recently commissioned by Louis Vuitton to create a piece for their "maison" concept store on New Bond Street. In an interview with ARTINFO UK, the artist goes back to the origin of his structural device and talks about the opportunities offered by different exhibition contexts. More

NPR Host Ira Flatow Wins Nierenberg Prize
La Jolla Light, Oct. 27 -- Ira Flatow, science journalist and host of NPR’s Science Friday has been selected by Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the William Nierenberg family to receive the 2010 Nierenberg Prize for Science in the Public Interest. More

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