Here is a sampling of links and notes about Carolina people and programs cited recently in the media:
International Coverage
Something for the weekend
Financial Times (United Kingdom)
…Michael Christian, an assistant professor of organisational behaviour at Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina and Aleksander Ellis an associate professor in the management and organisations department at the University of Arizona’s Eller College of Management looked at two groups of people – nurses before and after their shift and a group of college students – half of whom were deprived of a full night’s sleep – who were asked to complete an experiment.
National Coverage
Few Babies in Child-Care Centers Receive Breast Milk: Study
HealthDay News
…"The findings speak to the tremendous challenges that women face in being able to successfully breast-feed their babies," said breast-feeding researcher Dr. Alison Stuebe, an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine in Chapel Hill. Stuebe agreed that the differences seen between babies from poorer or more affluent homes might be due, in part, to mothers not being able to pump during the workday.
China's Population Growing Slowly, Changing Fast
Science
…And yet, even as the sex ratio at birth increased, the country's overall sex ratio—including adults and seniors—fell, from 106.7 males per 100 females in 2000 to 105.2 per 100 now. That drop is puzzling, says Cai Yong, a demographer at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. The 2000 census found that Chinese females were living an average of 3 years longer than males. The 2010 results suggest that the life expectancy gap has widened to about 8 years—a shift Cai calls “almost impossible.” He hopes more detailed data, expected later this year, will explain the mystery.
State and Local Coverage
As economy swooned, N.C. companies took fewer credits
The Triangle Business Journal
…Tyler Mulligan, an assistant professor at the UNC School of Government, says the recession and the slow recovery period has likely been the main driver for the reduced use of state tax credits. Tax credit installments begin in the year after the credit was generated.
Carolina Inn plans phase 2 renovation to cost $9 million
The Triangle Business Journal
With about half of the renovations to the historic Carolina Inn’s oldest guest rooms complete, UNC-Chapel Hill officials are seeking permission to borrow another $9 million to renovate the remaining guest rooms and public spaces by the end of this year. …Loans to finance the projects are paid off by revenue generated by the hotel, which was donated to the university in 1935. To issue bonds, the inn must gain permission from the General Assembly, which was done for the first phase. The renovation projects are not expected to have any impact on tuition and fees at the university.
UNC faculty try to tackle ‘grade inflation’
The Triangle Business Journal
It’s no secret that students admitted to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are bright, but academicians are beginning to question whether 82 percent of them are either A or B scholars. …“There is a grade inflation and compression issue going on,” says Andrew Perrin, an associate professor of sociology at UNC. “An A is definitely not an A.”
NCSU opens new veterinary center
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
…Indeed, a large number of major breakthroughs in human medicine have their origins in veterinary medicine, said David Green, a spokesman for the college. "So this is a cheap way to help humans," Green said. Scientists in the vet school and an adjacent research building use what they learn at the hospital in projects at places such as Duke University and UNC-Chapel Hill's Lineberger Cancer Comprehensive Center.
Clark to leave WRAL.com for UNC post
WRAL-TV (CBS/Raleigh)
John Clark, general manager of WRAL.com, announced Thursday his decision to leave Capitol Broadcasting Company to join the faculty at the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
A seamless success and a race to the top in education (Opinion-Editorial Column)
The Fayetteville Observer
…The North Carolina Race to the Top evaluation will be carried out by three groups: the Carolina Institute for Public Policy at UNC-Chapel Hill, the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation at N.C. State University and the SERVE Center at UNC-Greensboro. (Dr. Willis B. McLeod is chancellor emeritus of Fayetteville State University.)
Student allegedly posed as teen girl
The Chapel Hill Herald
A UNC freshman who was arrested by the FBI on Tuesday allegedly posed as a 14-year-old girl online, then first enticed and later threatened 12- and 13-year-old boys to send him sexually explicit images of themselves.
Related Links:
http://www2.journalnow.com/news/2011/may/06/wsmet01-unc-student-
from-lewisville-accused-of-coe-ar-1009022/
Issues and Trends
NC House gives final approval to its budget plan
The Associated Press
…The House gave final approval to its budget Wednesday after three hours of debate. Tentative approval was given Tuesday after nearly 10 additional hours of debate and votes on 40 amendments. The bill will go to the Senate, which will create its own budget version that's likely to tinker with the balance of cuts between the universities and the public schools but will have little additional funds from April 15 tax collections beyond earlier expectations.
Record $559M s
elf-funded in buildings on tap for UNC
The Triangle Business Journal
The University of North Carolina System is expected to set a record this year with more than a half-billion dollars in self-funded capital projects, an amount that could create more than 14,000 jobs. The total comes to $559 million across 23 projects, and university officials would go to the bond market not long after the legislature approves the list later this summer.