A Sampling of Clips for February 19^th, 2008

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

Way Too Few Sharks in the Pond
Marketplace, NPR, Feb. 18 – A study from researchers at UCSD says most large shark species have declined by more than half. Other reports have put that number as high as 90 percent. More

Similar story in
BBC News
Reuters
The Guardian, U.K.
Sydney Morning Herald
Dallas Morning News

Learning from Tijuana: Hudson, N.Y., Considers Different Housing Model
The New York Times, Feb. 19 -- If you doubt that the derelict shantytowns of Tijuana could work as a template for redevelopment in a quaint, upscale town in the Hudson River Valley, you’re probably underestimating UCSD professor Teddy Cruz. More

The Other Carbon: Reducing Black Carbon's Role in Global Warming
Wired News, Feb. 17 -- V. (Ram) Ramanathan of UCSD, said that reducing black carbon could play an important role in reducing global climate change here at the AAAS annual meeting. Ramanathan said that a mere 10 percent reduction in black carbon would be equivalent to eliminating 25 gigatons of carbon dioxide emissions. More

SoCal Water Authority Takes Issue with Las Vegas Mayor's Comments
San Francisco Chronicle, Feb. 17 -- Mayor Oscar Goodman stirred controversy when he said Las Vegas will meet its needs with the water used by farmers in California. Goodman was responding to a question about a study from San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography predicting that Lake Mead, which provides Colorado River water to much of the Southwest, could go dry by 2021. More

Similar story in
Sacramento Bee
San Diego Union-Tribune

The 14 Biggest Engineering Problems Facing the Planet
Chronicle of Higher Education, Feb. 16 -- At the AAAS annual meeting, the National Academy of Engineering issued a list of 14 “grand challenges” confronting the discipline and the world. More than 50 expert reviewers crafted the list, including some big names, like the Nobel laureate and environmental scientist Mario Molina of UCSD. More

Study Uncovers Way to Fight Leukemia
San Diego Union-Tribune, Feb. 17 – A UCSD research team has found a promising way to attack chronic lymphocytic leukemia, the most common form of adult leukemia in the United States. More

New Center Will Study Evolution of Humans
San Diego Union-Tribune, Feb. 17 –Dr. Ajit Varki, a professor of medicine and molecular biologist at UCSD, along with Salk Institute neuroscientist Fred Gage and Margaret Schoeninger, a professor of anthropology at UCSD, have announced the creation of a center to study the origin of humans. It will be based in existing buildings at UCSD and at the Salk. More

UCSD Students Anything But Apathetic
10News, Feb. 15 -- College students these days are often called `apathetic,' compared to previous generations, but at UCSD, at least, that may not be fair. More

The Promise of Biofuels
San Diego Union-Tribune, Opinion, Feb. 17 – With gas prices approaching $4 a gallon and industries searching for new ways to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, biofuels – fuels such as ethanol derived from corn and other plant sources rather than petroleum – are becoming an increasingly attractive option to help mitigate the impacts of climat e change and reduce our oil imports. (Co-authored by Marteen Chrispeels, a professor in UCSD's Division of Biological Sciences and director of its Center for Molecular Agriculture, and Steve Kay, dean of UCSD's Division of Biological Sciences) More

There Won't Be Blood
San Diego Union-Tribune, Feb. 16 – Gordon Dahl, a young economist at UCSD, is part of a wave of creative thinkers in his field moving beyond the familiar – inflation, unemployment – to study such eyebrow-raising topics as sumo wrestlers and the Ku Klux Klan. More

Others Enjoy this Nice Strip of Land
San Diego Union-Tribune, Feb. 16 – While ordinary folks have to hike down steep trails or take a long walk from La Jolla Shores or Torrey Pines State Beach to reach Black's, there is one paved route to the beach, a road UCSD happens to own and secures behind a locked gate. More

Cutting Trays, Cutting Waste
San Diego Union-Tribune, Feb. 19 -- A universal fixture is disappearing from dorm dining halls: the tray. College cafeterias nationwide are going to trayless dining in an effort to reduce waste. The rationale is that students won't load up on large portions in all-you-can-eat settings if they can't stack their dishes on a tray. (Mentions UCSD) More

28 'Super' Delegates Courted in California
San Diego Union-Tribune, Feb. 17 -- Aleita Huguenin is one of the 28 so-called superdelegates from California who have not endorsed either Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York or Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois for the Democratic presidential nomination. (Quotes UCSD political scientist Gary Jacobson) More

Dual Degree Offered in Oceanography
San Diego Union-Tribune, Feb. 18 -- A concurrent doctorate and master's degree in oceanography will be offered at UCSD this year. Billed as the nation's first such program, the doctorate will come from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the master's from the Rady School of Management. More

UCSD Science Historian Named College's Provost
San Diego Union-Tribune, Feb. 16 -- Science historian Naomi Oreskes, whose work has played a crucial role in establishing a consensus about global warming among scientists, has been appointed provost of UCSD’s Sixth College. More

UCSD, County Awarded $535K Grant for Staff Integration Program
San Diego Business Journal, Feb. 18 -- A $535,000 grant will be used to fund a local pilot program aimed at unifying medical staff in the treatment of patients suffering from chronic illnesses such as high blood pressure, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes and heart disease. The county of San Diego’s Aging and Independence Services and UCSD Extension are working with a professor at George Mason University in Virginia to launch the online classes for the extension’s spring lineup as part of Team San Diego. More