A Report on Discoveries and Achievements at the University of California
Volume 4, Number 4, January 1996
The following is a glimpse of some recent achievements by the faculty, students and staff of the University of California.
Peace Prize Lecture . . . John Holdren, vice chair of the Energy and Resources Group at UC Berkeley, delivered one of two acceptance lectures for the 1995 Nobel Peace Prize. Holdren is chair of the Executive Committee of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs; the prize was split between the Pugwash organization and its founder, physicist Joseph Rotblat. The peace prize is awarded in Oslo, Norway on the same day that the other Nobel prizes are awarded in Stockholm, Sweden.
AAAS Fellows . . . The American Association for the Advancement of Science awarded the distinction of fellow to 26 UC researchers out of a national total of 273 new fellows. UC Riverside had eight, followed by four at UC Berkeley, three each at UC Irvine and UC San Francisco, two each at UC Davis, UCLA and UC San Diego, and one each at UC Santa Barbara and UC Santa Cruz.
Vroom, Vroom . . . For the first time in five years, California's economic engine is warming up and is expected to accelerate and catch up with the rest of the nation, according to Bob Smiley, dean of the Graduate School of Management at UC Davis. The state's economy is expected to increase 2 to 3 percent over the next two years, with agriculture, tourism and high-tech manufacturing driving the recovery.
Primary Care Gap . . . The number of primary care doctors in California is nearly one-third lower than generally believed, according to a study by family medicine researcher Kevin Grumbach of UC San Francisco. Generalists account for only 25 percent of California's physicians rather than the widely-accepted figure of 35 percent. Grumbach suggests more aggressive measures at the state and national level to boost the pool of primary care doctors.
Focus on Undergrads . . . UC Santa Cruz ranked 13th in a first-time survey by U.S. News and World Report on the best national universities for undergraduate teaching. Magazine editors asked presidents, provosts, and deans of admission to select universities where the faculty "has an unusually strong commitment to undergraduate teaching." Santa Cruz was the only UC campus ranked in the top 25.
Balancing Act . . . Much of the popular appeal of a federal balanced
budget law and the line item veto are because both are used by states.
A statistical analysis by economists Henning Bohn of UC Santa Barbara and
Robert P. Inman of the University of Pennsylvania show that these fiscal
rules have indeed been successful on the state level. States with stringent
balanced budget rules typically run budget surpluses that are more than
double the surpluses of states with less stringent rules. The line item
veto also has a positive but much less systematic impact.
Block That Mutant . . . Research physicians at UCLA led by Charles Sawyers discovered how to block the pathway of the mutant gene that causes chronic myelogenous leukemia, a common type of adult leukemia. So far, the discovery works in the lab; Sawyers' next step is to try to block the gene in human beings.
Kids and Tobacco . . . The Weekly Reader, one of the two most popular newspapers read by elementary school students around the country, was found to be more likely than its competitor to have articles friendly to the tobacco industry, according to health policy researcher Edith Balbach of UC San Francisco. In articles related to smoking, the paper is less likely to give a clear "no use" message compared to Scholastic News. Both the Weekly Reader and Scholastic News reach between 1 million and 2 million students in each elementary grade level.
Diet and Cancer . . . The UCLA Breast Cancer Nutrition Program, directed by oncologist John Glaspy, is investigating whether altered diets can help women with metastatic breast cancer that hasn't responded satisfactorily to traditional treatment. The program attempts to shrink tumors through a low-fat diet high in soy-based foods and fish oils . . . UC San Diego and UC Davis are two of five clinical research centers selected for a study of nutrition and the recurrence of breast cancer. Participants -- women who have been treated for breast cancer and are currently free of the disease -- will be put on a low-fat, high-fiber diet and followed over time to see if their breast cancer recurs. The eight-year study is the first to take a whole-diet approach to the question of whether dietary nutrients can protect against the development of cancer.
Vigor Is Better . . . Current guidelines on physical activity and health may underestimate the benefits of prolonged vigorous exercise for women, according to a study of women runners by life scientist Paul Williams of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The study challenges the notion that moderate exercise provides the same benefits as strenuous exercise. Among the runners, vigorous exercise resulted in healthier hearts, reduced weight -- particularly around the waist and hips -- and improved blood pressure.
Misplaced Efforts? . . . Efforts to prolong the lives of seriously ill patients too often merely prolong dying, according to a study led by Neil S. Wenger, assistant professor of medicine at UCLA. Wenger found the main problem was inadequate communication: doctors didn't clearly convey patients' actual chances for survival and families didn't effectively discuss their own wishes.
Look at That X-ray Again . . . UC San Francisco radiologists Clyde A. Helms and Nancy M. Major discovered a new indicator of disease, including some cancers, that is found on plain x-ray films. The marker -- an abnormality where the hip joins the pelvis -- can help doctors diagnose and treat abnormalities earlier.
Helping Hand . . . Beth LePoire, assistant professor of communication at UC Santa Barbara, is launching a study of how spouses and "significant others" of people with drug and alcohol addiction problems can be more effective in helping their partners kick their addictions. LePoire's research is funded by a five-year $500,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health.
TB Education . . . Art Rubel, a professor emeritus of family medicine at UC Irvine, is principal investigator for a study of what poor people attending medical clinics in Mexico know about the significance of their tuberculosis symptoms. The study, funded by the National Science Foundation, will help health educators devise more effective public health campaigns to fight TB, which is on the rise in Mexico . . . A team of UC San Diego physicians received a $1 million contract to conduct a three-part study to examine why some children contract TB and find new ways to combat the the spread of the disease among children.
Detecting Breast Cancer . . . Biomedical imaging scientist Laura
Mascio of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory assembled the first CD-ROM
library of mammogram images to help researchers develop computer software
for detecting breast cancer. The digitized images of actual mammograms
can be used by medical researchers to test the efficiency of computer programs
that analyze mammograms for early signs of cancer.
Hens at Play . . . Happy hens are healthier and lay more eggs. UC Riverside poultry specialist Don Bell found that hens are happier if they have "environment enrichment devices" -- toys and objects of interest -- to play with in the chicken coop. In a study involving 120,000 hens, Bell and colleagues from Hebrew University in Jerusalem found that poultry farmers who use the devices could increase egg production, and thus profits, up to 50 percent.
Clear Vision for Telescopes . . . The first full-scale test of a new laser guide system on a large telescope was conducted by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory astrophysicist Claire Max and laser scientist Herb Friedman. The new technology will allow astronomers to correct their telescopes for atmospheric distortion. Large ground-based telescopes fitted with laser guide star systems could see three to four times more clearly than the Hubble Space Telescope.
Don't Pass the Salt . . . Biologist Julian Schroeder and his team at UC San Diego created a mutant gene that blocks the absorption of sodium in yeast cells. The discovery goes far beyond yeast: it opens up a possible way to genetically modify plants so they won't soak up sodium from salty soil -- a major problem that affects almost one third of all crops in California and the world.
Seeds of Protein . . . UC Davis geneticist Raymond Rodriguez invented a way to genetically engineer rice and barley to produce human blood proteins to prevent clotting, make artificial blood and treat emphysema. In the process, a human gene is customized to resemble a plant gene and then inserted into the rice or barley plant. When the plant's seed germinates, the grain produces the desired human protein.
Mars Ho . . . A UCLA team led by David A Paige, associate professor of planetary science, will build and operate (by remote control) the payload aboard the Mars Surveyor '98 Lander, a first-of-its-kind mission that will explore some of the most fundamental questions about Martian climate, atmosphere and water distribution. The mission is scheduled to land on Mars in December 1999 . . . Three gamma ray probes built at Los Alamos National Laboratory were taken to Russia for launch as part of the Mars 96 mission, an international effort to study the red planet. Measurements from the devices will help map the composition of the Martian surface.
Distant Relative . . . During explorations in Inner Mongolia,
UC Santa Barbara paleontologist André R. Wyss and a Chinese colleague,
Jin Meng, discovered rare fossilized ear bones of an extinct squirrel-sized
mammal called a multituberculate. According to Wyss, the tiny, pebble-sized
fragments reveal that the multituberculate -- long an evolutionary puzzle
-- is apparently an ancestor of the egg-laying platypus and its close kin,
the spiny anteater.
3-D In Motion . . . The next step in computer imaging -- true 3-D motion -- was developed by engineers Shin-yee Lu and Robert Johnson at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. The new technology, called "CyberSight," links specialized software with a stereo camera system to generate accurate, detailed computer imaging of surface features and actual mechanics of movement. Applications range from improved medical imaging systems to multimedia.
Cold and Clean . . . Commercial testing began on cold plasma technology, a new method developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory for cleaning up toxic waste sites. Unlike incineration, the new technology doesn't use heat or an open flame. Instead, toxic gases pass through an electrically powered cell where they're broken down into safe and easily managed substances.
Core Research . . . Using diamond anvils and lasers, researcher
Chooh-Shik Yoo of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is reproducing
the conditions of the earth's core in his laboratory. His goal is to find
out with greater precision than before how iron -- the most common element
in the core -- behaves at the core's high temperatures and pressures. The
results have potential for the creation of new advanced materials.
Bigger Menu for Biofilters . . . A team of researchers at UC Davis is working to expand the spectrum of toxic substances that biofilters -- naturallyoccurring bacteria -- can digest and detoxify. The team is testing new combinations of nutrients and minerals it hopes will let the bacteria eat substances they're currently unable to digest. Biofilters are used to help clean up sites polluted with gasoline, toluene, ethanol and other chemicals.
Shaky Ground? . . . Seismologists Kim B. Olsen and Ralph J. Archuleta of UC Santa Barbara and Joseph R. Matarese of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology predict that a magnitude 7.75 earthquake along the San Andreas fault in southern California -- which they give a 27 percent chance of occurring in the next 30 years -- would be far more severe than expected. Because the Los Angeles basin is basically a sediment-filled bowl, ground motion would be 4 to 10 times greater than that of the 1992 magnitude 7.3 Northridge quake, California's most powerful in 40 years.
A New Look Below . . . Scientists led by geophysicist David Sandwell of UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography and a researcher from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration used newly declassified satellite measurements to develop the most detailed picture to date of the global sea floor. The computerized image opens new doors to underwater scientific and resource exploration.
Cleaner Blubber . . . California sea lions now carry about 100
times less DDT in their blubber than they did in the early 1970s, according
to a study by marine biologists at UC Santa Cruz. It's the steepest drop
in DDT levels seen in any animal population, and is linked to the fact
that in 1970, a large manufacturer in southern California stopped dumping
DDT in the ocean.
TV Nation . . . Commercial television stations are not living
up to congressional mandates to increase educational programming for children,
according to a study by Dale Kunkel, professor of communication at UC Santa
Barbara. Kunkel found that, on average, stations claimed to provide 3.4
hours of children's educational programming per week, but called programs
such as "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers" educational. Kunkel says it's new
evidence that congressional mandates aren't working.
Core Grant . . . UC Irvine was awarded a five-year, $3.8 million grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to provide a "core facility" for the research and treatment of mental retardation and developmental disabilities in children. With the grant, UCI becomes one of only 14 of the institute's Mental Retardation Research Centers in the country, and one of two in California.
Wiring the State . . . Los Alamos National Laboratory will provide technical leadership and support for a plan to wire the state of New Mexico with a new computer telecommunications infrastructure. The infrastructure will connect remote areas with state offices and health and communications services. It will also help New Mexico businesses market their products globally over the Internet.
Onward and Upward . . . UC Riverside received a grant of $898,000 from the U.S. Department of Education to begin the college preparatory Upward Bound program in three Riverside County high schools. Upward Bound, one of the most successful national educational enrichment programs, is designed to develop educational skills and motivation among low-income and potential first-generation college students.
Studying Monterey Bay . . . The Monterey Bay Regional Studies
program at UC Santa Cruz received $562,500 from the National Science Foundation
to support interdisciplinary studies in environmental biology. Graduate
students in the program will focus on Monterey Bay environmental issues
from several different perspectives in the natural and social sciences.
Each student will complete an apprenticeship outside the focus of his or
her doctoral research.
Fermi Award . . . Martin Kamen, professor emeritus of chemistry at UC San Diego, was a co-recipient of the Enrico Fermi presidential award, the U.S. government's oldest science and technology award. Kamen was honored for his discovery of carbon-14, a chemical tracer used in a multitude of scientific fields.
Promoting Korea . . . Edward Chang, assistant professor of ethnic studies at UC Riverside, received the Presidential Award from the president of the Republic of Korea for his work promoting Korean language programs in the United States. Chang also received the John Anson Ford Award from the Los Angeles Human Relations Commission.
Marshall Scholar . . . Kelly Maglia, a 1995 UC Irvine graduate
in drama and music, was awarded the highly competitive Marshall Scholarship,
along with about $20,000 annually for a minimum of two years' study at
a British university. Her first choice is Goldsmiths College, University
of London. Along with the Rhodes Scholarship, the award is regarded as
one of the two most prestigious scholarships offered to American university
students.
Compiled by Communications Services, Office of the President, steve.tokar@ucop.edu