Media Highlights

April 2007

This summary highlights media placements members of the UCSC community have garnered during the month of April 2007.

National and international

Biologist Barry Sinervo spent two days with a TV crew from the PBS program Nature for an episode about his research on the evolutionary biology of side-blotched lizards. . . . United Press International covered research by Chris Wilmers of environmental studies about climate conditions and population cycles. UPI's story was distributed widely and appeared online on Biology News Net and other Internet sites. . . . USA Today quoted history professor Dana Frank for an article about what constitutes an "American" car. . . . An article in New Scientist about star clusters near the center of our galaxy included quotes from astronomer Douglas Lin. . . . . People magazine tapped psychology instructor Don Saposnek for comment on the custody battle of 8-year-old Anna Mae He, who was taken away from her foster parents and returned to her birth parents. . . . Research on earthquake faults by geologists Emily Brodsky and Amir Sagy was covered by UPI, FoxNews.com, Earth Times, Science Daily, Live Science, PhysOrg.com, and other online news sites. . . . Research on RNA enzymes by biochemists William Scott and Michael Robertson was covered by UPI, Medical News Today, Live Science, Earth Times, and others. Space Daily ran a story about Scott's research on RNA enzymes and the origins of life. . . . The Chronicle of Higher Education reported on work by Patricia Allen of the Center for Agroecology & Sustainable Food Systems on consumer preferences regarding food labeling that goes beyond "organic" to address issues such as animal husbandry, country of origin, and the working conditions of workers in the agriculture and food industry. . . . Linguistics professor Geoffrey Pullum appeared on National Public Radio's Weekend Edition in a discussion of the unique language of the Piraha Indians of northwest Brazil. . . . An Associated Press report about efforts taken to prevent e. coli outbreaks cited the work of doctoral student Diana Stuart, who is studying conflicts between food safety and environmental regulation. The story was published widely, including in the Houston Chronicle, the Monterey Herald, and BusinessWeek.com. . . . Researchers with the UC Santa Cruz Predatory Bird Research Group found themselves in the midst of a media frenzy when they rescued three eggs from a peregrine falcon nest on the San Francisco Bay Bridge--stories featuring researchers Brian Latta, Glenn Stewart, Janet Linthicum, and Brian Walton ran on the CBS Evening News, KNTV, KPIX, KTVU, and KSBW TV, CNN Radio, San Francisco Chronicle, Santa Cruz Sentinel, Seattle Times, Kansas City Star, AP wire service, and CNN.com. . . . Education professor June Gordon fielded a call from a reporter with the Christian Science Monitor about the shortage of Mandarin Chinese teachers in the San Francisco Bay Area. . . . Economist Mike Dooley's "revised Bretton Woods hypothesis" was cited by Bloomberg News in an article about the U.S. current account deficit that appeared in the International Herald Tribune. . . . An article about flash memory in Technology Review magazine quotes computer scientist Ethan Miller. . . . Astronomer Stan Woosley was quoted in a story in Asian News International and Hindustan Times about a rare double explosion of a massive star. Asian News International and Hindustan Times also carried a story about asteroid impacts on Mars that quoted graduate student Shawn Hart. . . . Investor's Business Daily and Entrepreneurial Mind were among the papers that wrote about a survey by economist Robert Fairlie, which found that Silicon Valley's entrepreneurship rates were higher than the national average during the 1990s and outpaced the rest of the country during the postboom period. . . . The Economist relied on the expertise of Karen Holl of environmental studies for an article about the role of bats in tropical rainforest restoration. The piece also described Holl's own restoration research in Costa Rica. . . . Bruce Bridgeman of psychology was interviewed by a Korean television crew that was exploring the psychological phenomena behind the Mystery Spot. . . . Ryan Coonerty of legal studies was the featured guest on National Public Radio's Talk of the Nation program, discussing his new book, Etched in Stone: Enduring Words From Our Nation's Monuments. . . . Research by seismologist Thorne Lay and graduate student Yingcai Zheng on the structure of the mantle in subduction zones was covered by Innovations Report, Space Daily, and Huliq.com. . . . The Statesman Journal cited New Teacher Center research in an opinion piece about investing in mentor programs for new teachers and administrators. . . . College & Research Library News announced that UCSC has received $350,000 in gifts to create a global cyber café and outdoor reading garden in the campus’s newly expanded and renovated McHenry Library. . . . The Columbus Dispatch ran a story about a speech by history of consciousness professor Angela Davis at the National Society of Black Engineers' 33rd annual convention, where she urged members to keep up the fight against racism.

State and regional

The San Francisco Chronicle ran an opinion piece by physicist Michael Riordan on the idea of a carbon tax. . . . The Sacramento Bee quoted associate professor of literature Louis Chude-Sokei in a story about how Barack Obama is handling racial issues in his campaign for the presidency. . . . The San Diego Union-Tribune ran a story about biologist James Estes and his new book on whales, whaling, and ocean ecosystems. . . . KQED Television's Quest program produced a profile about anthropology graduate student Chelsey Juarez, who is pioneering a new forensic technique to help identify the remains of Mexican immigrants who die anonymously while trying to cross the border into the United States. The show aired on KQED and KTEH, and the network plans to share the program with community organizations involved in immigration issues. . . . The Fresno Bee included the Center for Agroecology & Sustainable Food Systems in a write-up about the expansion of UC's research in organic agriculture. . . . In an article about the enthusiastic response across the country to new politically and socially relevant operas, the Los Angeles Times noted that UCSC was staging Lou Harrison's Young Caesar. . . . The San Jose Mercury News ran a story about the UC Santa Cruz Predatory Bird Research Group's web cam on a pair of peregrine falcons nesting at San Jose City Hall, with quotes from biologist Glenn Stewart, who was also featured along with Seymour Center director Julie Heffington in coverage by KGO TV of the peregrines in San Jose, San Francisco, and at Long Marine Lab. . . . The Silicon Valley Business Journal ran a profile of UCSC Foundation trustee Jack Baskin and his wife and feminist studies research associate Peggy Downes Baskin, with quotes from Baskin Professor of Computer Engineering Pat Mantey, engineering Acting Dean Michael Isaacson, and Acting Chancellor George Blumenthal.

Local

The Santa Cruz Sentinel ran a front-page story with sidebar on UCSC's Silicon Valley Initiatives, with quotes from Acting Chancellor George Blumenthal, Vice Provost Carl Walsh, UARC director William Berry, UARC science director Michael Isaacson, and others; the story also ran in the Contra Costa Times. . . . Biologist Terrie Williams was featured in a Santa Cruz Sentinel story about her Women of Discovery Award. . . . Biologist Glenn Stewart of the Santa Cruz Predatory Bird Research Group was featured in a Santa Cruz Sentinel story about his visit to a Watsonville charter school with his tame peregrine falcon. . . . Brent Haddad and Michael Loik of environmental studies were quoted in a Santa Cruz Sentinel article about the growing opportunities for consultants to help communities grapple with the potential local impacts of global warming. . . . The Monterey Herald ran a long article on the Landels-Hill Big Creek Reserve featuring reserve manager Kurt Merg and graduate students Kendra Karr and Melissa Foley. . . . The Santa Cruz Sentinel ran an item about a Microsoft grant for computer game design courses, with a quote from Charlie McDowell, professor of computer science. . . . The Educational Partnership Center has been in the news recently, with coverage in the Salinas Californian and the Watsonville Register-Pajaronian. The Sentinel and the Register-Pajaronian also mentioned the center's programs in their coverage of the recent visit to Watsonville by UC President Robert Dynes. . . . Shakespeare Santa Cruz was named the top theater troupe and the third-best festival in Metro Santa Cruz's Readers' Choice Goldies Awards. The campus radio station, KZSC-FM, was also named best radio station. . . . The Santa Cruz Sentinel and Good Times ran stories about graduate students Shaye Wolf and Doug Bevington, whose efforts helped stop a liquified natural gas terminal in Baja California. . . . The Santa Cruz Sentinel reported that two humanities faculty--history professor Gail Hershatter and history of consciousness professor James Clifford--received 2007 Guggenheim Fellowship awards.

See media outlets highlighted in bold.

Back to Media Highlights index