A Sampling of Clips for December 9^th, 2009

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

Underwater Data Back Up Theory of Hawaii’s Origin
The New York Times, Dec. 7 -- The prevailing theory for the origin of the Hawaiian Islands is that the volcanoes that formed them are the result of a mantle plume, an upwelling of hot material from deep within the earth. The prevailing theory for the origin of the Hawaiian Islands is that the volcanoes that formed them are the result of a mantle plume, an upwelling of hot material from deep within the earth. “People have been waiting for high-resolution seismic imaging,” said Cecily J. Wolfe of the University of Hawaii at Manoa. By showing how seismic waves from earthquakes travel through the mantle below Hawaii, seismometers would go a long way toward settling the matter. (Mentions UCSD’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography) More

Climate Conference Opens in Copenhagen
ABC News, Dec. 7 -- The two-week United Nations Climate Change conference officially kicked off in Copenhagen this morning. The conference is expected to attract 15,000 delegates, activists and journalists from around the globe.
President Obama to propose green house gas reduction of 17 percent by 2020. Delegates arriving at the conference center today were met by a small but loud group of protesters beating drums and chanting. (Quotes climate scientist Richard Somerville with UCSD’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography) More

Henry Molaison's Brain Lives On
Los Angeles Times, Dec. 8 -- Reporting from Hartford, Conn. - Henry Molaison lived in relative obscurity, but he possessed one of the world's most famous brains. Known to generations of scientists and psychology students as H.M., Molaison lost the ability to form new memories after surgery removed part of his brain and, by agreeing to be studied over several decades, transformed the way we understand memory. H.M. died last December, but science isn't done with his brain. Molaison, a Hartford, Conn., native who in life often expressed a wish to do what he could to help people, donated his brain for research. The brain now sits in the lab of neuroanatomist Jacopo Annese, director of the Brain Observatory at UCSD, where researchers have big plans for it. More

A Crisis of Overconfidence
CNN Money, Dec. 8 -- Thousands of years ago, our ancestors fanned out from Africa, convinced that something better lay over the next hill. They brazenly faced down a dangerous world of beasts much larger and fiercer than they were, and their boldness as hunters probably contributed to some species -- saber-toothed cats and the mammoth, for instance -- going extinct. While there may appear to be little similarity between those prehistoric times and today, it turns out that the same audacity that made us effective predators also may have driven the relentless advance of Homo sapiens from caves to condos and from primitive haggling to hedge funds. (Mentions "The Evolution of Overconfidence," written by evolutionary biologist Dominic Johnson of the University of Edinburgh and political scientist James Fowler of UCSD) More

On Health Care, Harry Reid Likens GOP to Civil-rights Opponents
Seattle Times, Dec. 8 -- Republicans trying to slow action on the Democrats' health-care plan are using the same tactics as the lawmakers who once tried to block progress on civil rights and women's rights, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Monday. "History is repeating itself before our eyes," the Nevada Democrat said as he opened the day's debate on health care. While congressional analysts thought that comparing GOP strategists to the senators who tried to thwart historic civil-rights movements was misplaced, they agreed with Reid that the Republican effort to slow the health-care bill is well-rooted in U.S. Senate history. (Quotes Gary Jacobson, a political-science professor at UCSD) More

UCSD Professors Concerned With Fee Increases
10 News, Dec. 7 -- Some professors at UCSD are speaking out about the UC system's fee increases, 10News reported. Student fees will be going up 32 percent to help the state close a $1.2 billion budget gap. While many students have been noisy, UC faculty members have remained much quieter about the fee increases, but some said they are concerned. More

It’s Time for Feds to Promote Cluster Initiatives
San Diego Business Journal, Dec. 7 -- Business clusters have existed throughout American history. Naturally occurring clusters — like Detroit’s auto industry, Akron, Ohio’s tire plants, and Hollywood’s film studios — all developed because of a combination of geographic and natural resources exploited by local inventors and entrepreneurs. (Mentions UCSD) More

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