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

International Coverage

Many people change docs due to perceived mistakes
Reuters (Wire Service)

A new survey of primary care practices in North Carolina shows nearly one in six patients believed their physician had made a wrong diagnosis or a treatment error, and about one in seven said they had changed doctor as a result. "Patients perceive mistakes in all types of outpatient clinics from primary care to specialty care, eye doctors to dentists, and they often change their doctors because of these perceptions," said Dr. Christine E. Kistler, whose findings are published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. But Kistler, of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, added that in some cases it didn't appear the doctor had done anything wrong.

National Coverage

Mark Emmert wants to police agents
ESPN.com

Incoming NCAA president Mark Emmert wants to get tough on rule-breakers. He also wants the governing body to get cozier with pro sports leagues and players' unions. Sound like a strange combination? Emmert said it's all part of a bigger plan to help police everything from unsavory agents to schools that ignore the rules. …Now, with an increasing number of high-profile programs under scrutiny — Alabama, North Carolina, Michigan, Oklahoma, Florida, South Carolina and Georgia among them — the penalty phase is getting more attention.

Regional Coverage

Trauma found in late football star's brain
The Morning Call (Allentown, Pa.)

The late former Parkland and Penn football star Owen Thomas sustained the kind of brain trauma more commonly seen in much older athletes who played contact sports for years, a detailed examination has shown. …Kevin Guskiewicz, director of a sports brain trauma institute at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, said studies of retired NFL players showed a three-fold increase in the likelihood of suffering from depression if they had at least three concussions.

State and Local Coverage

NC Science Festival
"The State of Things" WUNC-FM

No matter where you live in North Carolina, you are about 90 minutes away from some good science — at least until September 26th. That's the last day of the North Carolina Science Festival, a 16-day celebration of science in the state. Everything from BugFest to the Discovery Channel's "MythBusters" is being served up. Host Frank Stasio will talk about the various events and the importance of making science accessible with the co-founders of the festival: Todd Boyette, director of the Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, and Denise Young, director of education and planning with the Morehead Planetarium and Science Center.
UNC Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/3763/74/

UNC granted $2.4M to develop drugs for childhood leukemia, brain tumors
The Triangle Business Journal

Two groups of UNC-Chapel Hill scientists have been granted a total $2.4 million for their work in developing drugs for treating childhood leukemia and brain tumors. The research is part of a national effort to accelerate the creation and testing of new anti-cancer drugs.
UNC Release:
http://cancer.unc.edu/news/2010/release0914/

UNC gets chunk of $16.8M health grant
The Triangle Business Journal

The U.S Department of Health and Human Services has granted $643,000 to UNC-Chapel Hill to support public health training centers. UNC was one of 27 organizations to receive part of $16.8 million doled out on Monday.

The Faulkner Collection
"The State of Things" WUNC-FM

When professor and Faulkner scholar Sally Wolff-King decided to expand the invitation list for her annual trek to Faulkner's house outside of Oxford, Mississippi to alumni at Emory University, she had no idea it would lead to the literary discovery of the decade. …The Leak family had donated the original to the Wilson Library at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received a typed version in return. Historians, economists and other scholars of the pre-Civil War South have used the diary to study the ways of slave holders and plantation owners, but Wolff-King made the connection to Faulkner and his work. She visits the UNC today to talk about the diary, but first she joins host Frank Stasio along with two of her students, Samuel C. Whitehead and Samantha Reid.

UNC students spread fire safety in community
News 14 Carolina

Some students at UNC Chapel Hill are working to make the town safer Wednesday. They're helping install smoke detectors in homes around campus as part of a fire safety campaign. …Last week Gov. Bev Perdue kicked off a campus fire safety awareness campaign in Chapel Hill at the Phi Gamma Delta house. The project pairs students with local firefighters to promote fire safety, especially in off-campus housing. The governor says she hopes UNC's focus on fire safety will encourage other communities, particularly near colleges and universities, across the state to adopt similar programs.

Restaurant critic Bruni giving two talks at UNC
The Chapel Hill Herald

Frank Bruni, former restaurant critic for The New York Times and an alumnus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, will give two talks at UNC in early November. Both talks are open to the public. …As an undergraduate at UNC-Chapel Hill, Bruni was a Morehead scholar and worked on the staff of the student newspaper, The Daily Tar Heel. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1986 with a Bachelor of Arts in English.

Swindell joins arts education task force
The Rocky Mount Telegram

N.C. Sen. A.B. Swindell, D-Nash, has been appointed to serve on the Statewide Arts Education Task Force by the N.C. State Board of Education. The group includes educators, legislators and members of the arts community. The task force is charged with creating a comprehensive K-12 arts education plan. …Other task force members include Holden Thorp, chancellor of UNC-Chapel Hill, Martin Lancaster, former president of the N.C. Community College System, and N.c. Sen. Katie Dorsett of Greensboro.

Apex adopts ethics rules for town officials
The Cary News

A code of ethics adopted by the Apex Town Council last week will serve as a physical reminder of the standards of conduct that both elected and appointed officials here must follow in their respective roles. …Hank Fordham, the town's attorney, told council members last week that the code itself is largely based on a model created by A. Fleming Bell, professor of public law and government at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Troubleshooter: Best think about what you put online
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

As everyone from Grandma to Uncle Joe gets on Facebook these days, questions about privacy and the social network site are everywhere. Sharing too much over Facebook or Twitter – your up-to-the-minute location, your naked photos, your mama's maiden name – can be harmful, even dangerous. …Daren Brabham, a UNC-Chapel Hill professor who studies new media, said the "Millennial" generation, with its overly attentive parents, tend to share too much online.

Alert Carolina Siren Test Next Tuesday
WCHL 1360-AM (Chapel Hill)

UNC will test its emergency sirens next Tuesday as a part of Alert Carolina, a safety awareness initiative. On September 21 between the hours of noon and 1 p.m., anyone on or near campus will likely hear sirens. The test is designed to make sure equipment is working properly and to prepare students and faculty for what to do in a real emergency. Following an alert tone and brief pre-recorded address, an “All Clear” tone will ring through campus signaling when it is safe to resume normal activity. For the test next week, however, no action is needed when the alarm sounds.
UNC Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/3891/1/

Death spurs UNC-CH to buy bedrails
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

UNC-Chapel Hill has provided more than 300 students with safety rails for their beds this year and ordered 800 more to meet demand. Hundreds of students have requested the rails after the death of 49-year-old Donna Sykes, who fell from a bunk bed as she slept in her daughter's dorm room. UNC-CH housing director Larry Hicks said the university could provide safety rails for all 8,500 beds for about $250,000.
Related Links:
http://www.wral.com/news/news_briefs/story/8293853/
http://blogs.newsobserver.com/orangechat/unc-to-equip-all-beds-wth-safety-rails

Dental Students Organize Cleft Palate Gallop
WCHL 1360-AM (Chapel Hill)

Students at the UNC School of Dentistry are coming together to organize the third annual Cleft Palate Gallop this month to raise money for kids with craniofacial anomalies. The organization is called Miles For Smiles, and co-chair Eric Nicholson says they’ve already had a great response from the Chapel Hill community. The Cleft Palate Gallop is a 5K race on the UNC campus. Proceeds will go to benefit the university’s Craniofacial Center, which serves children with cleft lip, cleft palate, and related disorders across North Carolina.
UNC Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/3886/71/

Artist partners with cancer hospital
The Chapel Hill News

Local textile collage artist Elaine O'Neil has collaborated with the N.C. Cancer Hospital to create a year of original art – twelve scenes that highlight the beauty and character of North Carolina. A kickoff event and signing was held Monday at the N.C. Cancer Hospital. …Proceeds from the sale of the display-quality art calendars will benefit the N.C. Cancer Hospital.

Nuts and seeds can add value to your diet (Column)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

Don't overlook seeds and nuts when you're trying to add good nutrition to your diet. Choose your favorites – walnuts, cashews, peanuts, almonds, sunflower seeds and more. These little packages of vitamins, minerals, dietary fiber and phytochemicals are also high in essential fatty acids and protein. Sure, there are downsides. Many packaged nuts and seeds are salted. Eat too many, and they may contribute to a diet that's too high in sodium. (Suzanne Havala Hobbs is a registered dietitian and a clinical assistant professor in the department of health policy and administration in the Gillings School of Global Public Health at UNC-Chapel Hill.)

Issues and Trends

Raise haze (Editorial)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

This month, Gov. Beverly Perdue cautioned state agencies that with a $3 billion budget hole looming, they'd better get ready for spending cuts of up to 15 percent for the next fiscal year. There's no surprise there: North Carolina remains mired in the consequences of the Great Recession, and these forecast cuts are only the latest. And yet, while many thousands of state employees have gone without pay raises for two years, some top bureaucrats in a few agencies have received raises since June of 2009.

NCCU granted $4.3M to study alcoholism
The Triangle Business Journal

Researchers at N.C. Central University have received a $4.3 million grant to study alcohol abuse. The five-year grant from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism will fund several studies, including investigations into how fetal alcohol syndrome affects nervous system development and whether alcohol abuse is a factor in oral cancer. The NCCU researchers will collaborate with researchers at UNC-Chapel Hill on some of the projects.

Murdock: K-Town campus to grow
The Triangle Business Journal

Foodie billionaire David Murdock says the research campus he founded in Kannapolis – and convinced the state and UNC to pour millions of dollars into – will resume growing after a slowdown.

Doctor accused in death of ballerina indicted on new charge
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

One year after a Raleigh plastic surgeon was accused of causing the death of a ballerina, he has been indicted on a felony charge of death by vehicle. Raymond Dwight Cook, 43, was arrested Tuesday following the grand jury indictment, according to arrest records filed with the Wake County Magistrate's Office. …Cook, who surrendered his medical license and gave up posts at the UNC-Chapel Hill school of medicine and Wake Med, is out of jail on $250,000 bail.

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