A Sampling of Clips for January 18^th, 2008

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

Gene Tests for Psychiatric Risk Polarize Researchers
Science, Jan. 18 -- Starting a biotechnology company was not part of John Kelsoe's life plan. A respected psychiatric geneticist here at UCSD, he has spent 20 years patiently searching for the genes behind bipolar disorder. Kelsoe has now laid this solid reputation on the line: He has founded a company that last year quietly began selling the first gene test to help diagnose people with bipolar disorder, which affects about 1% of the population. More

Local Stem Cell Research Group Advances in Quest for Grant
San Diego Union-Tribune, Jan. 18 – San Diego has moved a step closer to snagging $50 million in state funding for the construction of a center for human embryonic stem cell research that would house joint projects by the region's top four research institutes. San Diego's request was submitted by the San Diego Stem Cell Consortium, a partnership of UCSD, the Burnham Institute, the Salk Institute and the Scripps Research Institute, all in La Jolla. More

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Stemagen Clones Human Embryos Using Donated Eggs, DNA
Bloomberg, Jan. 17 -- Five human embryos were cloned using donated DNA from skin cells, a technique that may lead to treatments based on patients' own stem cells. (Mentions research at UCSD) More

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Scientists Are Still Searching in the Dark for the Secrets of Sleep
The Wall Street Journal, Jan. 18 --People have been trying to figure out why we sleep for almost as long as we have been conscious of being awake, tossing and turning in the dark. (Quotes UCSD psychologist Sara Mednick) More

Asia's Best Books in 2007
The Wall Street Journal, Jan. 18 -- Many of the best nonfiction books published last year attempted to divine the trajectory of Asia's emerging twin powers, India and China. The accounts of China split into those who argue the Communist Party's grip on power is a finite phenomenon – UCSD political scientist Susan Shirk in "China: Fragile Superpower" -- and those, like Joshua Kurlantzick in "Charm Offensive" -- who believe that Beijing's clever coupling of economic liberalism and a one-party state is here to stay. More

No Mercy from a New Camera
U.S. News & World Report, Jan. 17 -- It would become the best known of all presidential debates, but nobody seemed to appreciate the impact that the first clash between candidates Richard Nixon and John Kennedy would have. (Quotes Michael Schudson, a communications professor at UCSD) More

Mysterious MJO Held Off La Niña to Let in the Rain
San Diego Union-Tribune, Jan. 18 -- Turns out that while La Niña usually dominates, it isn't the only player out there. One of those known unknowns, the Madden-Julian Oscillation, can complicate matters. (Quotes Tim Barnett, a climate researcher at UCSD's Scripps Institution of Oceanography) More

UCSD's Extended Studies Enrollment Increases
San Diego Daily Transcript, Jan. 17 -- Enrollment in certificate programs at UCSD Extension has increased 25 percent. More

Athena Transitions to Independent Nonprofit Organization
San Diego Daily Transcript, Jan. 16 -- Athena, the San Diego organization for executive women, today reported it will transition from the UCSD Rady School of Management to an independently operated nonprofit organization under the name Athena San Diego. More