A Sampling of Clips for April 1^st, 2008

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

As Fight for Water Heats Up, Prized Fish Suffer
The New York Times, April 1 -- A new report by the Rocky Mountain Climate Organization, based on research by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, shows temperatures in the West the last five years increased by 1.7 percent, compared with 1 percent elsewhere. In a February paper in the journal Science, researchers said they expected the changes to accelerate. “We’ll see less snow, even if there is the same amount of moisture,” said the lead author, Tim Barnett, a researcher at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego. More

Is Familiarity Different Than Remembering?
Scientific American, April 1 -- Have you ever had the experience of seeing someone in the grocery store that you know you've already met, but you can't quite remember where or when you met them? In other words, you have a feeling of familiarity, even if you can't remember what, exactly, this familiarity is based upon? Compare this experience with what happens when you meet someone whom you recognize immediately, and can remember lots of relevant details about. (Written by Brock Kirwan, a post-doctoral fellow at UCSD) More

Scientists Want Your MacBook for Earthquake Detection
Wired News, March 31 -- Everybody knows you can't predict an earthquake. The only way would be to get inside a time machine, go into the future, and send back a message. (Mentions the San Diego Supercomputer Center) More

Appendix Removed Through Vagina in Groundbreaking Operation
Times Online, U.K., March 31 -- An American woman has had her inflamed appendix removed through her vagina, in a groundbreaking operation at UCSD that left her with no scarring and minimal pain. More

Snow is Deep, but Don't Expect Climate to Cool Down
The Salt Lake Tribune, March 31 -- After the hottest summer on record, Utah's snowpack future was looking a little grim. But a quick turnaround in December and steady snowfall throughout the winter and even spring has brought snow levels along the Wasatch Front to about 120 percent of average. (Mentions the Scripps Institution of Oceanography) More

50 Years Later: Global Warming Pioneer Honored
CBS News 8, March 31 -- Fifty years ago this month, the Keeling Curve changed the way the world thinks about global warming, and it was created by a scientist here in San Diego. Now his son is carrying on the climate legacy. You might say it's the sound of music to the ears of climate scientists like Ralph Keeling, a researcher at UCSD’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography. A tool designed by his father Dr. Charles David Keeling measures carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. More

Counterattack
San Diego Union-Tribune, April 1 -- American consumers love to have choices, but when it comes to pain relief, we just want something that works fast, effectively and without troublesome side effects. (Quotes Dr. William Norcros, chief of family medicine at the UCSD Medical Center) More

Going, Going. . .Green
San Diego Magazine, April 2008 -- While there’s been a landslide of products, services, laws and initiatives—and a growing realization we can take better care of our natural resources—being green is still not easy. (Quotes Tim Barnett, a research marine physicist at UCSD’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography) More

Public and Private Sectors Pitch In
San Diego Magazine, April 2008 -- The San Diego Foundation, the region’s premier grant-making organization, has introduced Climate Smart. Four institutions—San Diego Natural History Museum, Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, California Center for Sustainable Energy (formerly the San Diego Regional Energy Office) and the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center—joined The San Diego Foundation to help advance the initiative. More

Pulling the Plug on Israel’s Brain Drain
The San Diego Jewish Journal, April 1 – The ISEF Foundation provides equal access to higher education for motivated young Israelis full of potential, but who come from disadvantaged communities. Three ISEF scholars who epitomize the purpose of the organization have taken ISEF up on its offer. Each studying at UCSD, they are three in 35 chosen this academic year to study abroad to earn their final degrees. More

Can Green Beget Green?
La Jolla Village News, March 27 -- The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation recently contributed $750,000 to the Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography on the UCSD campus, 2300 Expedition Way. More