A Sampling of Clips for December 15^th, 2008

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

Get Lost ... and Get Better Architecture
MSNBC, Dec. 15 -- The merging of neuroscience, architecture, psychology and virtual reality is allowing researchers to track the brain signals of study participants as they navigate through a simulated building within a high-tech room called the StarCAVE at Calit2. More

Examining an Amnesiac's Brain
NPR, Dec. 12 -- The much-observed brain of amnesiac "H.M." will be sectioned and preserved for scientists to study. Jacopo Annese, director of The Brain Observatory at UCSD and the neuroscientist in charge of the procedure, explains what researchers hope to learn. More

Genopolitics
The New York Times, Dec. 12 -- Why do some people vote and others stay home on Election Day? For years, scholars have assumed that a voter pulls the lever because she grew up in a voting household or perhaps sat through a lot of civics classes. But this year two UCSD political scientists published studies claiming that in addition to environment, genes may be a primary influence on political engagement. More

For a Soldier's Parents, Their Own Post-Trauma
Los Angeles Times, Dec. 15 – When Army Sgt. Ryan Kahlor returned from two combat tours in Iraq last year, he was a walking billboard for virtually every affliction suffered by today's veterans. He was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. Hi father, Tim Kahlor, a UCSD employee, says he and his wife, Laura, have been left with what he calls, only half in jest, "secondary PTSD." More

California in Crisis: 2008 Feels a Lot Like 2003
Los Angeles Times, Dec. 15 -- California government is arguably more dysfunctional now than it was when Gray Davis, a Democrat, got the boot. The budget deficit has grown so huge that a shutdown of government services looms. Partisan gridlock grips the Legislature, and lawmakers bicker as the state plunges into crisis. "The recall absolutely hasn't helped at all," said Gary Jacobson, a professor of political science at UCSD. More

Governor, Others in Calif. Await Obama's Agenda for Environment
San Diego Union-Tribune, Dec. 14 -- For eight years, the Bush administration routinely frustrated California's environmental agenda. Now, with President-elect Barack Obama poised to set federal policy, environmentalists believe they will have a friend in the White House, even if some policy changes might be slower and smaller than they would like. (Quotes Gary Jacobson, a professor of political science at UCSD) More

Crash Renews Calls for Base to Be Vacated
San Diego Union-Tribune, Dec. 14 -- The years of uneasy, or at best ambivalent, relations between Miramar Marine Corps Air Station and its civilian neighbors boiled over last week. Monday's crash of an F/A-18D Hornet in University City has renewed calls for the Marines to vacate the base and move to El Centro, Lemoore or some other less populated area. (Mentions a UCSD study about the military’s economic impact in San Diego) More

Illegal-Immigrant Workers Driven Down Hard Road
San Diego Union-Tribune, Dec. 14 – The plunging U.S. economy and subsequent cuts in the construction, service and manufacturing industries are prompting many immigrant workers, particularly those in the United States illegally, to contemplate a life-changing decision: Do they stay and earn far less, or head home to meager opportunities? (Quotes Wayne Cornelius, director of the Center for Comparative Immigration Studies at UCSD) More

The Education of Business… and the Business of Education  
BizSan Diego, Winter 2008 -- Both the University of San Diego and UCSD interact with local companies in multiple ways, from one-time interactions to student projects and multimillion-dollar partnerships. More

Thirty-Something, Brother and Sister, and Atop San Diego Politics
Voice of San Diego, Dec. 15 -- Natives of San Diego County, the Gonzalez siblings have grown to local prominence in their fields. While they clearly care for one another, they are in some ways each others' most pointed critics. (Quotes UCSD political scientist Steve Erie) More

UCSD to Offer Ph.D. in Management
San Diego Daily Transcript, Dec. 15 -- The Rady School of Management at UCSD will launch a doctorate program in management next fall, the university announced Monday. More

UCSD Adds Power Storage to Fuel Cell Project
La Jolla Light, Dec. 15 -- UCSD plans to store power produced at night from a planned 2.8 megawatt "green" fuel cell and use the energy during peak-demand hours the following day when electricity rates are highest. More

* Subscribe with In the News and receive our clips automatically