A Sampling of Clips for September 2^nd, 2008

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

Cloud-Sniffing Drones Soar Over Asia
ABC News, Aug. 30 -- Guiding a small squadron of robotic aircraft and fielding a network of ground stations, scientists from the United States, China, and South Korea this summer are putting vast plumes of Asian air pollution under some of the most exhaustive scrutiny ever. "I'm concerned about what's going to happen over the next 10 to 20 years as we clean up the atmosphere," says Veerabhadran Ramanathan, an atmospheric scientist at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UCSD, and one of the project's two leading scientists. More

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Spray-On Explosives Detector
Scientific American, Sept. 1 -- Chemists at UCSD have come up with a spray-on polymer film that can spot residue from nitrogen-based explosives such as TNT. It works in as little as 30 seconds. More

The Colbert Bump
The Washington Post, Sept. 1 -- The comedian Stephen Colbert routinely maintains that he plays an outsize role in influencing the course of American politics. After former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee appeared on "The Colbert Report," the show noted, Huckabee's popularity went from 1 percent to 3 percent. Political scientist James Fowler of UCSD recently decided to test Colbert's claims. He found, amazingly, that there was some truth -- or, at least, "truthiness" -- to them. More

California's Doldrums Sending Some Immigrant Workers Home
Los Angeles Times, Sept. 1 -- With the ongoing economic downturn and the collapse of the construction industry, day laborers in California are feeling the effects. Now, some immigrant workers are choosing to go home rather than wait for a rebound. (Quotes Wayne Cornelius, director of the Center for Comparative Immigration Studies at UCSD) More

A Quota for Yeshiva Studies
Haaretz, Israel, Opinion, Sept. 2 -- The increased number of yeshiva students stems directly from the thwarting of the Tal Law, which was supposed to integrate ultra-Orthodox men into the military and economy. (Quotes UCSD economist Eli Berman, a leading researcher on the economics of religion) More

Burnout in Medical School Linked to Suicidal Thoughts, Survey Says
Boston Globe,  Sept. 1 -- Doctors are more likely to take their own lives than are the rest of us. Their suicide rate is 40 percent higher for male physicians and 130 percent higher for female physicians than for other men and women. A new study suggests the doctors' increased risk of suicide may begin with the burnout they feel in medical school. (Mentions UCSD) More

McCain for President?
San Diego Union-Tribune, Opinion, Sept. 1 -- This election is about Barack Obama not John McCain. This is true for a couple of reasons. The first is that in a year so tilted toward the Democrats, Obama wins easily so long as he doesn't run too far behind the rest of his party. (Co-authored by Keith Poole, a political scientist at UCSD) More

Analyze This
Voice of San Diego, Sept. 2 -- Companies have always used complex mathematical formulas to minimize losses and track customer preferences. But as more and more companies struggle to evaluate heaps and heaps of data ushered in by the information age, industry experts say San Diego could very well claim analytics as its third major technology bragging right, after biotechnology and telecommunications. (Mentions UCSD) More

The 40 Under 40 Class of 2009
San Diego Metropolitan Magazine, Sept. 2008 -- Welcome to the ninth annual 40 Under 40 special edition where San Diego Metropolitan once again recognize our region’s exceptional young business and civic leaders. Up and comers with UCSD connections include Lihini Aluwihare, from Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UCSD, Dr. David Smith, who runs the Center for AIDS Research at UCSD, Melanie Cruz Walsh of UCSD’s Division of Physical Sciences and Dr. Chris Searles of the UCSD Combined Family Medicine & Psychiatry Residency Program. More

UCSD Selects Borrego Solar to Install Solar Electric System
San Diego Daily Transcript, Sept. 2 -- El Cajon-based Borrego Solar Systems Inc., a designer and installer of grid-connected solar electric power systems, announced that UCSD has selected Borrego to install a 1.2 megawatt solar electric system -- consisting of Kyocera Solar photovoltaic modules -- as a central component to the university's robust sustainable energy program. More

UCSD Ranked First in Division II
and 20th Overall in 6th Annual NCSA Collegiate
La Jolla Light, Aug 29 -- The National Collegiate Scouting Association (NCSA) is announced that UCSD has earned a listing in the 6th Annual NCSA Collegiate Power Rankings. More

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