A Sampling of Clips for April 8^th, 2008

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

Treatment reverses Blood Disorder in Mice, Study Finds
Reuters, April 7 -- An experimental treatment in mice showed promise in reversing a rare blood disease that can cause leukemia, U.S. researchers said on Monday, offering a glimpse of how the drug may work as it begins testing in humans. In experiments at Harvard Medical School in Boston and at UCSD, researchers found the compound blocked a genetic mutation that causes three kinds of leukemias. More

Similar story in
Scientific American
San Diego Union-Tribune
Budapest Business Journal
FOX6 News
Imperial Valley News

The No-Incision Appendectomy
TIME, April 3 -- Over the past year, U.S. doctors have made strides in the use of a technique called "natural orifice" surgery, an approach they hope will do away with the scarring, pain and the long recoveries associated with some traditional operations. Last month, in an American surgical first, doctors at UCSD removed the appendix of a 24-year-old patient through her vagina. More

Soot May Play Big Role in Global Warming
FOX News, April 7 --  Black carbon, the stuff that gives soot its dirty color, could be the second most important contributor to climate change after carbon dioxide and a key to preventing warming, at least in the short-run, a new study suggests. V. Ramanathan of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in California and his colleagues reviewed recent studies of black carbon's warming contribution in the March 24 issue of the journal Nature Geoscience. More

Stephen Colbert: Democratic Kingmaker?
The Weekly Standard, April 7 -- A forthcoming paper by UCSD political scientist James H. Fowler in the journal PS: Politics and Political Science finds that Democratic Congressmen appearing on Colbert’s segment "Better Know A District" get a 44 percent bump in their fundraising after participating in his show. More

Similar story in
The Economist
The Huffington Post

San Diego Tax Hike Money Goes to Hoteliers
KPBS, April 8 -- Twice in the last four years, San Diegans have rejected proposals to increase the hotel tax in order to pay for much needed firefighting tools. Last December, just weeks after wildfires had destroyed hundreds of homes in the city, the hotel tax was increased but not for firefighting. (Quotes UCSD political scientist Steve Erie) More

Arrest Made In SD Area Campus Threat
NBC San Diego, April 7 -- Authorities have arrested a Sacramento County man accused of making threats against an unspecified college campus in San Diego, according to the San Diego Police Department. (Mentions UCSD) More