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

International Coverage

Be careful not to catch flu while pregnant
The Times of India

Influenza A infection during pregnancy can affect brains of babies, says a study on rhesus monkeys. Published online by the journal Biological Psychiatry , the study found that rhesus monkey babies born to mothers who had the flu while pregnant had smaller brains and showed other brain changes similar to those observed in human patients with schizophrenia. The study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in collaboration with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is the first study done with monkeys that examines the effects of flu during pregnancy.

National Coverage

Charges Of 'Re-Segregation' At N.C. High School
"Morning Edition" National Public Radio

A high school in Wayne County, N.C., has a student population that is poor and 99 percent black. That's not the case at other public high schools in the rural county. And that has prompted a civil rights inquiry — and complaints about what one leader calls "re-segregation." …Mark Dorosin is a senior attorney with the Center for Civil Rights at the University of North Carolina. "The Wayne County case is particularly egregious," Dorosin said. "But it is also symbolic, or emblematic, of the trends we're seeing, not only throughout North Carolina but across the country."

Are Doctors Recommending Too Many Tests?
"World News with Diane Sawyer" ABC

Many who opt for angiograms, tests designed to detect the presence of heart disease, may be receiving the test unnecessarily, according to researchers. …However, the methods for determining how invasive tests are ordered "are far from perfect," said Dr. Cam Patterson of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, who was not involved in the study.

Your Kids and Food: The Secret Life of Snacking
"Good Morning American" ABC

…Daily children consume more unhealthy snacks than ever before, and snacking now accounts for more than 27 percent of their daily calories, according to a study published in the March issue of Health Affairs. The study, conducted at the University of North Carolina, surveyed more than 30,000 children and found that on average they snacked at least three times a day on candy, salty chips and other junk food. Unhealthy snacking added almost 600 calories a day to kids' diets — up by 168 calories from the late 1970s.
UNC Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/3396/71/

Consumer Confidential: Junk food, mo' money, airline strike (Blog)
The Los Angeles Times

Here's your thoughtfully Thursday roundup of consumer news from around the Web: –Weight and diabetes risk go down when the cost of a burger and fries go up. This unsurprising conclusion comes courtesy of researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, who say they find people consume less fast food when it costs more, but when prices go down, people eat more junk. "These results indicate that increasing the price of fast foods and sodas can affect adult behavior, and steer them toward healthier diets, lower weight and less risk of diabetes," the researchers write. On the other hand, they don't call them "value meals" for nothing.
UNC Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/3410/71/

Regional Coverage

Two-day seminar at Wecht Institute to tackle football brain injuries
The Post-Gazette (Pittsburg, Pa.)

A hot-button issue will be tackled at today's edition of Forensic Fridays at the Cyril H. Wecht Institute of Forensic Science and Law at Duquesne University — a National Football League issue, to be precise. The institute's title for this two-day seminar: "Is Football Bad for the Brain?" …Among the scheduled speakers: …Kevin Guskiewicz, a Latrobe native and one-time graduate assistant trainer with the Steelers who heads the University's of North Carolina Injury Prevention Research Center, where studies dating to 2003 found former NFL players complaining of dementia and the like later in life at a higher rate than the normal population.

State and Local Coverage

Health care bill splits N.C. lawmakers
The Fayetteville Observer

Two congressmen who represent the Fayetteville area and one North Carolina senator say they oppose the latest health care reform bill. …Polls also show people are in favor of individual components of the plan. Those proposals include reducing premium costs, said Jonathan Oberlander, professor of social medicine and health policy and management at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Local marina presents a taxing situation
The Washington Daily News

At first report, the Beaufort County tax assessor’s office was baffled as to how it should tax the The Marina at Moss Landing, a new and still-unfolding development on the Washington waterfront. …Asked for his thoughts on the Washington marina, Joseph Kalo also drew from the New Bern development as an example. Kalo is co-director of the North Carolina Coastal Resources Law, Planning and Policy Center and a Graham Kenan professor of law the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Conference to focus on Haiti work
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

The Haiti Connection's 10th annual conference on issues facing the island nation will be held today and Saturday at First Presbyterian Church in Raleigh. …Kathy Johnson, a clinical instructor at the School of Social Work at UNC-Chapel Hill, will talk about writing proposals for grants to fund work in Haiti. Johnson has helped her church, Western Boulevard Presbyterian in Raleigh, get several grants to help run its orphanage in Haiti. The facility has agreed to take on 10 children who lost their parents in the earthquake, Johnson said.

Keeping open ears
The Herald-Sun (Durham)

Eileen Ivers' credentials as an Irish fiddle player are well-established. She has been an all-Ireland fiddle player numerous times, and fans of Celtic and world music know her work with the "Riverdance" musical, Cherish the Ladies and more recently with her ensemble Immigrant Soul. …That journey is celebrated in "Beyond the Bog Road," which Ivers and ensemble will perform Wednesday in Memorial Hall at UNC.

Pianist performs with symphony
The Chapel Hill Herald

Pianist Antonio Pompa-Baldi takes the stage with music director Grant Llewellyn and the North Carolina Symphony to perform Beethoven’s powerful “Emperor” Concerto, April 8-10. The concert also highlights the symphony’s wind and brass sections with commanding works by Stravinsky, Bach and Arvo Pärt. The performances begin at Memorial Hall on the UNC campus on April 8, followed by two weekend concerts at Meymandi Concert Hall in downtown Raleigh’s Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts, April 9-10.

Violinist cancels UNC show (Blog)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

Violinist Julia Fischer has canceled an April 6 performance at Memorial Hall at UNC-Chapel Hill. Fischer's management announced that the violinist has withdrawn from her North American tour for personal reasons.
UNC Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/3427/66/

Issues and Trends

College binge drinking soaring among women (Opinion-Editorial Column)
The Chapel Hill Herald

Binge drinking is uniquely tied to college environmental conditions, finds an eight-year Harvard School of Public Health study. That landmark work concludes binge drinking students are more likely to experience a wide range of problems, including academic difficulties, social conflict, risky sexual behavior, risky driving behavior, vandalism, injury and alcohol overdose. …What verdict will UNC and the towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro render regarding this casual form of alcohol abuse? (Ronald E. Bogle is a retired Superior Court judge and works with the Coalition for Alcohol and Drug Free Teenagers.)

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