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

International Coverage

Testicular zap 'may stop sperm'
BBC News

A dose of ultrasound to the testicles can stop the production of sperm, according to researchers investigating a new form of contraception. …The concept was first proposed in the 1970s, but is now being pursued by researchers at the University of North Carolina who won a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Related Link:
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/01/30/ultrasound-sperm-zap-male-contraception_n_1241018.html?ref=uk

A new contraceptive for men on the horizon? Just a couple of zaps
of ultrasound kills sperm, say scientists
The Daily Mail (United Kingdom)

…Study leader Dr James Tsuruta, from the University of North Carolina, said: 'Unlike humans, rats remain fertile even with extremely low sperm counts. 'However, our non-invasive ultrasound treatment reduced sperm reserves in rats far below levels normally seen in fertile men. 'Further studies are required to determine how long the contraceptive effect lasts and if it is safe to use multiple times.'

Degrees of change
The Financial Times (United Kingdom)

…While every business school is exploring the option of blended learning, in which courses can be either online or based in the classroom, in 2012 all eyes will be on the Kenan-Flagler school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In 2011 it launched MBA@UNC, essentially an online MBA, but with the same premium fees as the full-time degree. If successful, it could set the benchmark for other highly ranked schools.

National Coverage

Aid Experts and Officials Question President's College-Affordability Plans
The Chronicle of Higher Education

So far, the outlines of the college-affordability proposals first mentioned in President Obama's State of the Union address last week have raised as many questions as they have answered. …"I question whether there's an understanding of why tuition goes up at public universities," said Shirley A. Ort, associate provost and director of scholarships and student aid at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The link between tuition and state support is often lost on the public, she said.

Big hits, broken dreams
CNN

The sport of tackle football can be very dangerous. Can teams play safely and still win? Dr. Sanjay Gupta reports. (Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz, Kenan Distinguished Professor and Director of the Matthew Gfeller Sport-Related Traumatic Brain Injury Research Center at UNC-Chapel Hill was featured in Dr. Gupta's special on football and concussions.)

Twitter's new censorship plan stirs global furor
The Los Angeles Times

…Some free-speech advocates defended Twitter, saying it was handing them tools to fight censorship. Zeynep Tufekci, assistant professor at the University of North Carolina and a fellow at the Harvard Berkman Center for Internet and Society, said she found herself in the unusual position of praising, not condemning, the policies of an Internet company. "Twitter is setting the bar as high as it can," Tufekci said. "It does not deserve the reaction it's getting."

Censoring of Tweets Sets Off #Outrage
The New York Times

…But this week, in a sort of coming-of-age moment, Twitter announced that upon request, it would block certain messages in countries where they were deemed illegal. The move immediately prompted outcry, argument and even calls for a boycott from some users. …Zeynep Tufekci, an assistant professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, took the other side. “I’m defending Twitter’s policy because it is the one I hope others adopt: transparent, minimally compliant w/ law, user-empowering,” she wrote.

Diabetes leg, foot amputations see dramatic drop
CBS News

People with diabetes were once very likely to face foot or leg amputations. These days, that fate is not as common. A new report from the CDC revealed a dramatic drop in diabetes-related amputations in the U.S. …"What jumped out to me was the scale of the improvement," Dr. John Buse, a University of North Carolina diabetes expert, told the Associated Press.

Scholars Seek Better Ways to Track Impact Online
The Chronicle of Higher Education

In academe, the game of how to win friends and influence people is serious business. Administrators and grant makers want proof that a researcher's work has life beyond the library or the lab. …Jason Priem, a third-year graduate student at the School of Information and Library Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is a leader in this push to track impact via the social Web.

For Some Vassar Applicants, Joy Then Misery as College Corrects Mistake
The New York Times

…Vassar is not the first college to supply false hope to students. In March, 61 applicants to the University of Delaware received misguided congratulations. Similar errors have plagued the University of California, San Diego, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in recent years.

Regional Coverage

Preschool provides benefits into adulthood (Opinion-Editorial Column)
The Cincinnati Inquirer (Ohio)

…This month, the online journal Developmental Psychology published the latest update on the 40-year-old Abecedarian Project study. Abecedarian is a Latin word for “one who learns the rudiments.” The study, led by the University of North Carolina’s Frank Porter Graham Development Institute, followed 101 low-income students in Chapel Hill from birth to age 30.

Case of two KU scientists illustrates growing problem of research fraud
The Kansas City Star (Missouri)

…R. Grant Steen, a University of North Carolina clinical researcher turned medical consultant, has analyzed a decade’s worth of research articles retracted from medical journals. He found an alarming acceleration in the numbers, with retractions for misconduct increasing faster than those for simple mistakes.

State and Local Coverage

Obama plan tethers federal aid to affordability
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

…The plan is likely to stir controversy. "That will be a hotly debated statement in higher education," said UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor Holden Thorp, who was among a dozen education leaders to meet with Obama to discuss the cost issue in December. "But I think it's good for him to press on all those things because we do need to look really closely at everybody that's going to college and whether they're being served by the system."

CNN re-examines death at Rose High
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

…Kevin Guskiewicz, director of the Matthew Gfeller Sport-Related Traumatic Brain Injury Research Center at UNC Chapel Hill and chair of Exercise and Sport Science department, has studied sports-related concussions for the past 17 years. He worked with the NFL to develop rule changes, including moving up the spot for kickoffs, to make football safer. He said the NCAA and the National Federation of State High School Associations are discussing possible changes, too.

UNC incubator launches to fuel growth of social start-ups
The Chapel Hill Herald

A test that can ensure water in developing countries is safe to drink. A musical instrument lending program. A community garden that would provide healthy food for poor families. Those are some of the ideas that students and professors want to develop through the new Social Innovation Incubator at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a program that will offer free space, financing, legal, communications and other services to grow those ideas into full-fledged nonprofits or businesses.

Military to troops: Cameras are OK, but be careful
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

…The most popular videos are those that show spectacular explosions of IEDs, strikes by rocket-propelled grenades, or human targets being hit. … "It's voyeurism," said Daren Brabham, an associate professor at the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Journalism who studies the role of new media in society. "People like to watch these kinds of taboo things. And people like a good explosion; that's pretty well-established."

The End of the World
"The State of Things" WUNC-FM

An ancient Maya prophecy supposedly pegs the end of the world for December 21, 2012. That apocalyptic prediction is just one of many that have filtered through society over the years. What makes people believe in the end of days? And how has this belief influenced life throughout history? Host Frank Stasio talks about the end of the world with …Brett Whalen, an associate professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill…

What is the science behind expanding waistlines?
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

Shedding pounds is undoubtedly one of the most common New Year's resolutions. Yet many people have already lost their resolve. Dr. Barry Popkin, professor of global nutrition at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the author of "The World is Fat," highlights the key causes of the obesity epidemic and what can be done about it.

Taking stock of our entrepreneurs
The Triangle Business Journal

…(Joan Siefert) Rose and a research team from UNC-Chapel Hill added a few more pertinent points to the discussion, among them being that North Carolina continues to be a hotbed for entrepreneurism and a breeding ground for serial entrepreneurs. That’s true in the Triangle in particular.

Cancer treatment method allows for more targeted approach
WRAL-TV (CBS/Raleigh)

Treating cancer is always tricky, but some cancers occur in parts of the body where radiation treatments may have harmful side-effects on surrounding organs or healthy structures. It makes the treatment approach more difficult, but not impossible. Thanks to a new technology called tomotherapy, treating hard-to-get-to types of cancer has become a bit less complex. …Rex and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Medical Center are two of the three hospitals in the state that have tomotherapy units.
Related Link:
http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/01/30/1816115/tomotherapy-offers-safer-radiation
.html#storylink=misearch

Poverty, right before our eyes (Opinion-Editorial Column)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

Along with about 60 colleagues, I recently toured Eastern North Carolina. We weren't loading up for the Outer Banks. Instead, we visited an array of the state's most economically distressed communities. In partnership with the state NAACP, the Justice Center and others, we met with about 1,500 Tar Heels in Washington, Roper, Elizabeth City, Winton, Scotland Neck and Rocky Mount. (Gene Nichol is the Boyd Tinsley distinguished professor at UNC's Law School and director of the UNC Center on Poverty, Work & Opportunity.)

Funding helps children (Opinion-Editorial Column)
The Chapel Hill News

As we celebrate the new year, we have some good news. Thanks to many who worked hard on the state's application for the Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge fund, North Carolina was awarded almost $70 million over four years to strengthen and improve its early care and education system. (Dan Hudgins is a clinical assistant professor at the UNC-CH School of Social Work and a former director of the Durham County Department of Social Services.)

Gun safety will prevent suicides (Opinion-Editorial Column)
The Chapel Hill News

The just-completed holiday season is synonymous with gorging ourselves, stringing our lights, and battling department store lines. Unfortunately, the season (or, more accurately, the period after) is synonymous with a more sobering trend: higher depression and suicide rates. (Deanna L LaMotte is a master's of public health candidate at UNC's Gillings School of Global Health.)

Foes of same-sex marriage ban urged to fight
The News & Observer (Raleigh)

…But the heart of the presentation was a secular presentation by a law professor, Maxine Eichner of the UNC law school. Eichner has written extensively on the amendment: "I am confident that I have spent more time considering the language of this amendment than anyone else in the state." The amendment will have effects beyond same-sex couples, Eichner said.

'Defining marriage' musical plays at forum
The Chapel Hill News

…The forum, "Defining Marriage in North Carolina by Constitutional Amendment: What Are the Implications?" will include, along with a panel discussion, a live production of "Amendment One: The Musical." …The panel discussion will feature Stuart Campbell, executive director of Equality North Carolina; Maxine Eichner, Reef C. Ivey III Professor of Law at the UNC School of Law; and Brett Webb-Mitchell, an ordained minister and visiting associate professor at N.C. Central.

Issues and Trends

Hunt, Eshelman differ, but understand value of public education (Editorial)
The Star News (Wilmington)

Education in North Carolina would be a lot better off if it were in the hands of people like Jim Hunt and Fred Eshelman. No doubt each casts his ballot very differently in the voting booth, but Hunt and Eshelman share a commitment to our public schools, colleges and universities, as well as a keen understanding that education is an investment that will return dividends many times over.

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