Media Highlights
June 2009
This summary highlights media placements members of the UCSC community have garnered during the month of June 2009.
National and international
Astronomer Greg Laughlin was interviewed on NPR's Science Friday and ABC Radio (Australia) about the possibility of orbital chaos leading to collisions between Earth and the inner planets, and was quoted in news stories on this subject in the San Francisco Chronicle (which also quoted planetary scientist Erik Asphaug), Newsweek, Science News, New Scientist, Discover, MSNBC.com, Universe Today, LiveScience, Red Orbit, Space Daily, and Space.com. . . . Laughlin also recently taped an interview on the subject of extrasolar planets for the History Channel program "The Universe." . . . And a Washington Post article about the search for a habitable planet around Alpha Centauri included quotes from Laughlin.
The Guardian of the U.K. published an opinion piece, coauthored by Roger Schoenman of politics, about Iran's youth using their internet skills to sidestep the regime.
National Public Radio interviewed assistant professor of film and digital media L.S. Kim for a story about reality television.
Research on compounds for photodynamic cancer therapy by biochemist Pradip Mascharak and graduate student Michael Rose was covered by UPI, Santa Cruz Sentinel, Genetic Engineering News, Medical News, Cancer Drug News, PhysOrg, Red Orbit, Science Centric, Insciences, Asian News International, and Zee News.
The New York Times featured research professor Bill Domhoff of psychology and sociology in a story about the Ivy League educations of Supreme Court nominees. The ABA Journal made note of the story.
The New York Times also quoted alum Gaspar Rivera Salgado of UCLA in a story about a Fresno radio station that reaches out to Mexican emigrants.
In ongoing coverage of injuries suffered by a prison inmate allegedly at the hands of prison guards, the Charlotte Observer cited research by psychology's Craig Haney into the psychological effects of long-term solitary confinement. . . . The Houston Press also cite Haney's work in a story about the incarceration of juveniles who are classified as adults and held in isolation for 23 hours a day.
USA Today quoted economist Rob Fairlie in a story about would-be entrepreneurs who are coping with job loss by launching their own businesses. . . . And in another issue, USA Today published a graphic based on Fairlie's research on immigrant-owned businesses in the United States.
Biomolecular engineer David Haussler was quoted in a news article in Science magazine about the role of noncoding RNA molecules in the genome and in another about public databases for genomics data.
Science News ran a story about research on pulsars by astronomers Stephen Thorsett and Bulent Kiziltan.
Anthropology's Judith Habicht-Mauche was featured in a wired.com story about new research shedding light on the migrations of early Americans. The story also appeared in Softpedia.
Steve Davenport, manager of Long Marine Lab, was quoted in a New Scientist story about potential effects on research projects of a proposal to close California state parks.
In a story about biodynamic gardening, Mother Earth News started at the beginning: Alan Chadwick's work at UCSC.
Environmental studies graduate student Michael Drucker published an article in Econews about a rash of brown pelican deaths along the West Coast.
State and regional
Glenn Stewart, coordinator of the UCSC Predatory Bird Research Group, was featured in coverage by KPIX TV, San Jose Mercury News, and Santa Cruz Sentinel of efforts by Stewart and a community of volunteers to monitor peregrine falcons nesting in San Francisco and San Jose.
Emerita professor of American studies Judy Yung was quoted in a San Francisco Chronicle article about the long fight for equality for Chinese Americans.
Biomolecular engineer Camilla Forsberg was quoted in a story about stem cell research in the Silicon Valley Business Journal.
UCSC's participation in the Silicon Valley Higher Education Roundtable was noted in a KGO-TV story about a program that encourages kindergartners in East San Jose to aim for college.
The San Francisco Chronicle praised theater arts professor Danny Scheie for his role in the new comedy, You Nero, at Berkeley Repertory Theatre.
Marine scientist Adina Paytan was interviewed on KION TV about research on mercury in coastal waters, and Paytan and environmental toxicologist Russell Flegal were quoted in news stories in the Santa Cruz Sentinel, Monterey Herald, San Jose Mercury News, and West Marin Citizen. . . . Paytan was also featured in a KGO TV news story about her work with the Kids' Science Challenge program, with interviews and footage of Paytan working in her lab with third-grader Claire Dworsky.
The San Jose Mercury News and Santa Cruz Sentinel ran a feature story on UCSC student Noah Meites, who was one of nine winners of the prestigious 57th annual BMI Student Composer Awards. Both papers also ran a story about the senior design projects completed by students in the Baskin School of Engineering.
A Contra Costa Times profile of actress Susannah Schulman noted that her early mentor was UCSC theater arts professor Danny Scheie--her current co-star in the Berkeley Repertory Theater's You, Nero production--who, as her Introduction to Acting teacher, "coaxed Schulman into Shakespearean theater."
In a story about philanthropist Helen Diller, the San Francisco Chronicle noted that past major gifts from her family foundation have included funding for the Jewish Studies Program at UCSC.
Local
This month in the Santa Cruz Sentinel:
Coverage of UCSC's first-ever Business Plan Competition was splashed across the front page. The story featured first-place winner Jackie Olin, a recent community studies grad, as well as the town-gown relationships that were fostered by the event. The Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal and Good Times also covered the competition. . . .
There was a story about cancer survivor Rigo Dicochea earning his master's degree in computer engineering at UCSC, with quotes from his adviser, computer engineer Jose Renau.
Art lecturer Soraya Murray was quoted in a story titled "Where Art Meets Cutting-Edge Tech" about the second phase of the Digital Arts and New Media (DANM) program's exhibition at the Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History. . . . The Sentinel published a feature story about DANM graduate student Nada Miljkovic and her thesis project on forced marriage that is featured in the exhibit. . . .
The paper announced that music professor Linda Burman-Hall would lead a UCSC collaborative music project at the Smithsonian Institution in conjunction with an exhibition titled "The Tsars and the East."
Geologist Gary Griggs was interviewed on KSBW TV for a story about Surfer magazine's ranking of Santa Cruz as the "number one surf town." . . . Griggs was also quoted in a Santa Cruz Sentinel story about a fossil whale being excavated on the central coast.