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Here is a sampling of links and notes about Carolina people and programs cited recently in the media:

National Coverage

USA TODAY's college all-stars gifted in class and beyond
USA Today

The nation's most gifted college students rightly take pride in their academic achievements, be they in the area of environmental policy, medical research or the classics. …Aisha Saad, an environmental health and Spanish double major with a 3.8 GPA sits in the outdoor Forest Theatre at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. She is also a Rhodes Scholar.
UNC News Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/2507/103/

Autism Studies Target Genetic Link
"CBS Evening News" CBS

…Today, a breakthrough discovery may offer answers for families like the Murrays. Three new studies involving nearly 11,000 families showed the strongest genetic link to autism yet – a gene mutation present in two-thirds of kids with autism, reports CBS News medical correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton. …"Language, our gestures, our facial expressions – if the synapses between brain cells are not functioning properly, it's difficult to carry out those complex social behaviors," said Dr. Geraldine Dawson, the chief science officer of Autism Speaks, a science and advocacy organization. (Dr. Geraldine Dawson is a research professor in the department of psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She was interviewed from the Carolina News studio.)

Research Points to Genetic Link in Autism
"World News with Charles Gibson" ABC

Scientists have long known that people with autism have brains that work differently — their brain activity doesn't follow the usual pathways for speech, thought or social interaction. Still, the lingering question has always been: why? …"The genes that were discovered appear to be involved in the development of the frontal lobe of the brain … that is, involved in complex behavior such as social behavior and also abstract thought," said Dr. Geri Dawson, chief officer of Autism Speaks and co-author of the study. (Dr. Geraldine Dawson is a research professor in the department of psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She was interviewed from the Carolina News studio.)

Let's not stop the presses (Blog)
USA Today

Don't give up on newspapers just yet. Their transition from ink on paper to publishing online has begun to produce some interesting hybrids. Out of all this experimentation, natural selection could produce some winners. (Philip Meyer is professor emeritus in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.)

Racial Pride
Ivanhoe (Newswire)

A new study finds feelings of experienced racial discrimination among African American youths can have negative implications for their feelings about their own race. …"These findings have implications for parents, teachers, and adults who have regular contact with African American youth," Eleanor K. Seaton, assistant professor in psychology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, was quoted as saying. "They suggest the need to bolster African American youth's feelings about their racial group membership, especially feelings related to feeling positively about being African American."
Note: Ivanhoe has a syndicated television series and its reports are broadcast in 250 markets reaching 80 million U.S. households.

State and Local Coverage

UNC Chapel Hill wins $17.5M solar grant
The Charlotte Observer

UNC Chapel Hill was been awarded a $17.5 million federal grant to develop new fuels from the sun's energy. The university said today will develop a research center focused on using solar energy to make fuels, such as hydrogen, from water and carbon dioxide. The fuels could be used for heating, transportation and energy storage.
Related Link:
http://localtechwire.com/business/local_tech_wire/venture/story/5045646/
UNC News Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/2506/103/

UNC gets $17.5M stimulus grant for solar fuels research center
The Triangle Business Journal

A federal stimulus grant worth $17.5 million will fund the development of a solar fuels research center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the university said Wednesday. The five-year grant, which comes from the U.S. Department of Energy through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, will fund research on how to use artificial photosynthesis to produce low-cost and efficient solar fuels.
UNC News Release: http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/2506/107/

UNC snares $17.5 million in stimulus money (Blog)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

UNC Chapel Hill has snared federal economic stimulus money to the tune of $17.5 million to develop a solar fuels research center. The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Energy and President Obama's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. It will pay for an interdisciplinary research center to develop solar fuels for next-generation photovoltaic technology, according to this UNC press release.

Obama gets good local grade for first 100 days in office
The Herald-Sun (Durham)

As President Barack Obama celebrates his 100th day in office, he's getting good marks from a majority of Americans, including area professors who believe the country, in spite of lingering economic challenges, is heading in the right direction under the new chief executive's leadership. …"The 100 days experience for new presidents and their staffs are about getting their feet under them — dealing with what they must deal with and finding time to deal with what they came to office to do," said Terry Sullivan, an associate professor of political science at UNC Chapel Hill.
UNC Tip Sheet:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/2493/103/

Unhealthy for our finances (Column)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

The road to this nation's economic ruin will be paved with government-run health care programs. Remember that, as calls for health care reform ramp up during President Barack Obama's next 100 days. …Jonathan Oberlander, associate professor of social medicine and health policy and management at UNC-Chapel, estimates meaningful health reform will run at least $100 billion a year.

Obama's first 100 days
WCHL 1360-AM (Chapel Hill)

Often compared to Franklin D. Roosevelt, Barack Obama will complete his first 100 days as president today. A leading scholar of the life of FDR and a UNC William Rand Kenan Jr. professor of emeritus of history, William E. Leuchtenburg says President Obama’s first 100 days is incomparable to any other president. Leuctenburg has written several books on FDR with the most recent being 1995’s “The FDR Years: On Roosevelt and His Legacy.”

Hospitals prepared for swine flu
WRAL-TV (CBS/Raleigh)

Area hospitals have ramped up for the potential of swine flu cases multiplying across North Carolina, officials said Tuesday. …Hand sanitizer and masks are readily available at WakeMed, as well as at Rex Hospital in Raleigh and UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill, officials said. Rex Hospital has set up a triage station to ask patients about their symptoms and travel history before they enter the emergency room. UNC is obtaining more anti-viral medications to treat the disease.

Educators hopeful cuts may save some jobs
The Chapel Hill Herald

The announcement of pay cuts and furloughs for state employees by Gov. Beverly Perdue on Tuesday drew both resignation and disappointment. A panel convened by the UNC Chapel Hill's Faculty Council in January seemed to believe that furloughs were the best option for budget savings among a slate of unappealing choices, said Joseph Templeton, chair of the council. "I assume the hope is that the difficulty that results form the loss of income from furloughs saves some jobs," Templeton said Tuesday.

Mixed messages in jobless numbers (Editorial)
The Herald-Sun (Durham)

Once again, the monthly unemployment statistics sent differing signals last week. …Even at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, while budget cutbacks are causing increasing pain and dislocation, the impact still is relatively less than in many sectors. The ability of our major educational and medical institutions to ride out this storm with some stability is reflected in our slightly brighter, and improving, jobless picture.

The World Is Fat
"The State of Things" WUNC-FM

Fifty years ago there were 100 million overweight people in the world. That sounds like a lot, doesn’t it? Well, it does until you learn that number has skyrocketed to 1.6 billion. Barry Popkin, author of "The World is Fat," joins host Frank Stasio to discuss the growing global problem of obesity.
Note: "The State of Things" is the statewide public affairs program airing live at noon weekdays and rebroadcast at 9 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays.

Free speech means letting all voices be heard (Editorial)
The Salisbury Post

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill got another chance last week to demonstrate how to handle controversial speakers, and this time the speaker did not have to be escorted out without speaking. …Chancellor Holden Thorpe said he regretted that arrests were necessary, but the audience for Goode's speech had been warned. "I want everyone to know that these six people do not represent what Carolina stands for when it comes to freedom of expression.

Roses and raspberries (Editorial)
The Chapel Hill News

Roses to Anoop Desai, whose thrilling ride through "American Idol" finally came to an end last week, just short of his ultimate goal. Desai, a native of Chapel Hill who sang with a capella groups at East Chapel Hill High and UNC, was just one of the thousands of hopefuls who began the "Idol" season when he auditioned in Kansas City last summer. …One of his biggest reasons for auditioning for the show in the first place, he said, was that he "wanted to make Chapel Hill proud." Mission accomplished.

UNC Wins Composting Award
WCHL 1360-AM (Chapel Hill)

UNC will receive a yearly award presented by the Carolina Recycling Association. The CRA is an association dedicated to honoring establishments who have shown exemplary tactics in composting or organic recycling. B.J. Tipton, recycling services manager at UNC, sats the Carolina Recycling Association or CRA recognizes business, schools or government agencies that have shown outstanding use of a compost or organic recycling program.
UNC News Brief:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/2491/103/

Drama chair new faculty leader
The Chapel Hill News

McKay Coble will be the next faculty chair at UNC. A design professor and chair of the department of dramatic art, Coble has taught at UNC since 1986. She has worked in recent years on a campus issue getting more and more attention in higher education: the increasing reliance on fixed-term faculty members. Coble, 52, begins her three-year term July 1.

Argentinean artist featured
The Herald-Sun (Durham)

Abstract paintings by Argentinean artist Eduardo Lapetina will be displayed May 6-June 11 in the FedEx Global Education Center at UNC. An opening reception from 3 to 5 p.m. May 9 at the center will include remarks by the artist at 3:30 p.m. About 25 of his large-scale paintings, some as wide as seven feet, will be displayed. The exhibit will be open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturdays.
UNC News Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/2503/103/

Bland Simpson readings are set
The Herald-Sun (Durham)

Bland Simpson, English and creative writing professor at UNC Chapel Hill, will read from and discuss his books "Into the Sound Country: A Carolinian's Coastal Plain" and "The Inner Islands: A Carolinian's Sound Country Chronicle," both featuring photography by his wife, Ann Cary Simpson, from 1:30 to 2:45 p.m. May 8 at the George Watts Hill Alumni Center.

Talk to focus on Internet news
The Chapel Hill Herald

Do you Twitter? Do you have information that's just so Delicious? The Internet has rocked our world, as today's students say, especially in the way we get news. …Leroy Towns, a political reporting and political communication professor in the UNC School of Journalism and Mass Communication and research fellow in the Program on Public Life, will lead this session exploring our wired world at the George Watts Hill Alumni Center from 3 to 4:15 p.m. May 8.

Issues and Trends

Tar Heels to be feted by state lawmakers, governor
The Associated Press

State lawmakers and Gov. Beverly Perdue will bask in the glow of the national championship won by the men's basketball team at the University of North Carolina. The Tar Heels and coach Roy Williams planned Wednesday to travel to Raleigh for a celebration with the state's General Assembly and Perdue. The team won the NCAA title three weeks ago by beating Michigan State 89-72.

Unpaid furloughs set for state workers
The Charlotte Observer

Gov. Bev Perdue on Tuesday ordered unpaid furloughs for all state workers, public school teachers and higher education employees in an effort to balance the budget in a struggling economy. The furloughs are expected to save the state between $65 million and $70 million, which will close a widening budget gap estimated at $3.2 billion in the current year, according to Charles Perusse, the state budget director.

Ex-UNC instructor guilty on rape and incest counts
The Herald-Sun (Durham)

A jury Tuesday found a former UNC instructor guilty of rape and incest. …UNC officials said Dye taught at the school as a lecturer at the university's continuing education center during the summers of 2005 and 2006. He was not on the payroll of the university but was paid by the class.
Related Link:
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/1505377.html

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