A Sampling of Clips for December 5^th, 2008

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

Laugh and the World Laughs With You: Happy's Contagion
TIME Magazine, Dec. 5 -- Ever wonder whether happy people have something you don't, something that keeps them cheerful, chipper and able to see the good in everything? It turns out they do — they have happy friends. That's the conclusion of researchers from Harvard and UCSD, who report in the British Medical Journal online that happiness spreads among people like a salubrious disease. More

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Colorado River to Strain Under Demand and Warming
FOX News, Dec. 5 -- Seven Western states will face more water shortages in the years ahead as climate change exacerbates the strains drought and a growing population have put on the Colorado River, scientists say. (Mentions research by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography) More

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Research: Young Gymnasts Face Wide Range of New Injuries
USA Today, Dec. 5 -- Young gymnasts now appear to be developing injuries well beyond one common to their sport, a new study led by a UCSD researcher says. Injuries to gymnasts' bones — especially the growing portions — are well known, but previously unseen damage to the wrists and knuckles, including necrosis — or "early death" — of the bones of the knuckles has been found, according to a study expected to be presented Monday at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America, in Chicago. More

Gene Discoverer Invited to Nobel Ceremony
NPR, Dec. 5 -- Scientist Douglas Prasher isolated a glowing jellyfish protein gene. When he lost his research funding, three other scientists built on that work. In October, it was announced that two U.S. and one Japanese scientists had won the Nobel Prize in chemistry. Prasher no longer works as a scientist. He now drives a courtesy van. The U.S. scientists who won the prize this week, including UCSD researcher Roger Tsien, invited Prasher and his wife to Stockholm for the Nobel ceremony. They will thank him in their acceptance speeches and will pay for the trip. More

King Solomon's Mines
CBC, Canada, Dec. 1 -- To the naked eye, it's just a sprawling heap of slag in sunbaked southern Jordan. But to some rather excited anthropologists, it might be one of the legendary mines of King Solomon. One of the lead anthropologists on the dig is Dr Thomas Levy at UCSD. More

Genetic Tests of Athletic Prowess — For Babies
Wired News, Dec. 4 -- A new genetic test offers to predict the sports at which a baby will someday excel. But even if the science were sound — it's not — this might not be a good idea. (Quotes Theodore Friedmann, a UCSD gene therapist) More

UCSD Professors Respond to Editorial
San Diego Union-Tribune, Letters to the Editor, Dec. 5 -- As a UCSD professor, and on behalf of 12 other UCSD professors who signed this letter, we believe the editorial grossly misrepresents the Miguel Contreras Labor Program by likening it to a lobbying organization such as the chamber of commerce. (Written by UCSD professor Isaac Martin) More

New Cancer Vaccine Clinical Trial Begins at UCSD
San Diego Daily Transcript, Dec. 4 -- The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and Memgen LLC, a clinical stage biotechnology company with offices in Dallas and San Diego, have begun a new clinical trial of ISF35, a cancer vaccine, at UCSD. More

Dynalectric Works to Make UCSD 'Grow' Solar
San Diego Daily Transcript, Dec. 4 -- Dynalectric Company San Diego, a provider of complex, fully integrated design-build electrical services, is currently handling the electrical contracting work for UCSD's solar grove project. More

UCSD Physician Helps Free Children from Gravity and Wheelchairs
Del Mar Times, Dec 4 -- Erik Viirre, a physician and associate professor at the UCSD School of Medicine, took part in a zero-gravity flight that let four paraplegic kids get out of their wheelchairs and become free from the burdens of weight on earth. More

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