A Report on Discoveries and Achievements at the University of California
Volume 4, Number 6, May 1996
The following is a glimpse of some recent achievements by the faculty, students and staff of the University of California.
Guggenheim Fellowships . . . Nine UC faculty members were awarded 1996 Guggenheim Fellowships out of a total of 158 awarded nationwide. Four are from UC Berkeley and one each is from UCLA, UC Santa Barbara, UC San Diego, UC Davis and UC Irvine. Guggenheim Fellows are appointed on the basis of unusually distinguished achievement in the past and exceptional promise for future accomplishment.
Lemelson-MIT Prize . . . Biologist Herbert W. Boyer of UC San Francisco shared the 1996 Lemelson-MIT Prize with Stanley Cohen of Stanford University. The $500,000 prize is given annually in honor of American invention and innovation. In the 1970s, Boyer and Cohen developed the gene cutting and splicing techniques that launched the biotechnology industry.
Sloan Fellowships . . . Young faculty members at the University of California captured 12 of the 100 fellowships awarded this year by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation of New York. The fellowships, worth $35,000 per year for two years, encourage researchers in the early stages of their careers to pursue innovative studies. UC recipients included three faculty members at UC Berkeley, two each at UC Davis, UCLA and UC Santa Barbara, and one each at UC Irvine, UC San Diego and UC Santa Cruz.
Making History . . . The National Center for History in the Schools at UCLA released the revised edition of voluntary standards for teaching history from kindergarten through 12th grade. The standards, which include guidelines and recommendations for the study of all of the major periods of U.S. and world history, will be distributed nationwide to more than 16,000 school districts and education leaders by the American Association of School Administrators.
Advising Physician . . . Anesthesiologist Marie G. Kuffner of UCLA was reappointed to a four year term on the Practicing Physicians Advisory Council of the Health Care Financing Administration. The prestigious post was sought by over 70 physicians nationwide.
Virtual Field Trips . . . The National Science Foundation awarded
$500,000 to UC Santa Cruz to support a project that will take public school
children on "electronic field trips" in Monterey Bay. Six public schools
will be wired to receive real-time images from NASA, underwater research
vessels, Lick Observatory and other scientific sources. Students will watch
research as it happens and interview scientists on-line.
Obscure but Powerful . . . Alpha-lipoic acid, a relatively unknown antioxidant found in food, is more potent than its better-known cousins such as vitamins C and E, according to biologist Lester Packer of UC Berkeley. The acid might prove useful in treating degenerative diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, and could be useful in preventing damage from strokes. Antioxidants work to clean toxins out of cells.
187 and Mental Health . . . California's Proposition 187, passed by voters in November 1994, has caused a 26 percent reduction in the use of mental health services by young San Francisco Latinos — even though it's been tied up in court since its passage. According to UC San Francisco medical student Joshua J. Fenton and his fellow researchers, young Latinos have been discouraged by the rancor of public debate over illegal immigration since the 187 campaign began.The researchers believe Latinos in other communities have been similarly affected. Proposition 187 would bar undocumented immigrants from all state-funded medical care except emergency services.
KS Culprit . . . A research team headed by UC San Francisco microbiologist Don Ganem discovered a herpes virus that leads to the development of Kaposi's Sarcoma, a cancer that affects many people with AIDS. The discovery paves the way for the development of tests to diagnose infection with the herpes virus and could lead to better treatments for KS itself.
Better Angioplasties . . . About 400,000 coronary balloon angioplasties are performed each year to clear clogged coronary arteries, but between 35 and 50 percent fail because the procedures cause cells in the artery walls to multiply excessively, reblocking the passage. But a new X-ray catheter being developed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Interventional Innovations Corp. of St. Paul will sterilize the cells to prevent them from multiplying. The treatment should save billions of dollars in repeat angioplasties and lost wages.
HIV Numbers . . . A team led by biologist Alan Perelson of Los Alamos National Laboratory reported that 15 times more infectious particles of HIV are produced in the body per day than previously estimated. The researchers also came up with new estimates of how long HIV particles last and how long it takes for a viral particle to reproduce. The findings will help guide the development of AIDS treatment strategies.
Cancer Relief . . . A UCLA research team headed by oncology expert James Berenson found a drug that significantly reduces bone destruction caused by multiple myeloma, a common bone cancer. The team found that the drug pamidronate alleviates both bone destruction and pain and improves the quality of life for patients . . . UCLA pain expert Joshua Prager is testing a medication pump that reduces cancer-related pain by delivering medication directly to the spinal fluid. The pump uses only one-three-hundredth the medication dose required if the medication is taken orally. Larger oral doses may cause side effects.
Best Friend Indeed . . . Service dogs are a cost-effective means
of helping disabled people, according to a study by UC Santa Barbara psychologist
Jim Blascovich and Karen Allen of the State University of New York, Buffalo.
The specially-trained animals can perform tasks such as opening and closing
doors, turning light switches on and off and pulling a person up from a
sitting or lying position. The researchers say service dogs are an especially
effective use of shrinking health care funds.
Rocking Geology . . . A discovery by UC Riverside geologist Harry W. Green II might cause the theory of plate tectonics — the foundation of geological theory — to be rewritten. Atop the Swiss Alps, where the African and European continental plates collided 40 million years ago, Green found rocks from deep beneath earth's mantle — exactly where they shouldn't be found, according to current theory. Green's discovery is being hailed by geologists around the world, who are scrambling for explanations.
A Look Inside . . . A mobile device similar to a CAT scanner that looks into nuclear waste drums without opening them was developed by researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Imaging Research Inc. of Illinois. The system is faster and safer than opening waste drums, and could reduce inspection costs up to 10 times. Hundreds of thousands of drums across the country await storage in permanent sites; every one will have to be inspected before being stored.
Sounding Out Gas and Bombs . . . Terrorists will have a harder time smuggling nerve gas and nuclear bombs, thanks to two new inventions from Los Alamos National Laboratory. Scientists there developed a tool that uses sound waves to detect nerve gas without breaching or damaging the gas container. Traditional inspection methods are destructive, time-consuming and potentially dangerous. Los Alamos scientists also designed a portable system that analyzes the chemical makeup of confiscated uranium to see if it can be used in a nuclear weapon. Field technicians can analyze a sample within 30 minutes.
Repose In Peace . . . A proposed federal repository for nuclear waste in Nevada's Yucca Mountain will most likely not blow up, according to a report by a team of scientists and engineers at UC Berkeley. The team, which investigated a suggestion by Los Alamos National Laboratory scientists that surplus plutonium stored at the site could explode like a nuclear bomb, found the scenario highly unlikely given the hydrology, geology and geochemistry of the site. Plus, said the team, the repository could be engineered to reduce any possible risk to near zero.
Flatter Is Better . . . A new low-cost, high performance lap-top
computer monitor was developed by researchers Ron Musket and Jeff Morse
of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory working with Silicon Video Corp.
of San Jose. The new monitor offers better resolution and performance while
using a fraction of the battery power required by liquid crystal displays
now on the market.
The Cutting Edge
Fusion Power . . . Experiments led by UC Irvine physicist William Heidbrink at Princeton's Tokamak Fusion Reactor set a new record for the amount of power produced by controlled nuclear fusion. The goal of the research is to produce a fusion power plant that is cheap, clean and uses a virtually inexhaustible fuel.
Cell Suicide . . . A genetically controlled process of cellular suicide, previously known to occur only in animals, was identified in plants by a team of UC Davis scientists led by plant pathologist David Gilchrist. The process, known as "apoptosis," is a series of orderly, pre-programmed changes in the DNA of the cell nucleus that leads to the cell's destruction. Scientists believe it occurs in order to make way for new cells. The researchers hope to identify the genes involved in plant apoptosis and eventually use it to control plant disease by selectively killing infected cells.
Planet Theory . . . Astrophysicists Douglas N.C. Lin and Peter Bodenheimer of UC Santa Cruz published the first plausible theory to explain the origins of a planet discovered outside our solar system last year. The planet, named 51 Pegasus B, was the first planet found orbiting a "normal" star like our sun. According to the theory, the Jupiter-sized planet formed at some distance from the star and then migrated inward to a close orbit.
Sensitive Images . . . Researchers at UC Berkeley, Lawrence Berkeley
National Laboratory and Tel Aviv University in Israel developed a new technique
that improves the sensitivity of nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy
and magnetic resonance imaging. The new technique, which uses specially
prepared xenon gas to make images brighter, offers new possibilities for
chemical research and medical imaging.
Underground Viruses . . . Groundwater is more dangerous than previously believed, according to UC Riverside researchers. The researcher found that the Environmental Protection agency has underestimated the number of infection-causing viruses lurking in groundwater. The EPA is currently developing regulations and standards to protect consumers from viruses in drinking water from underground sources. Viruses and microorganisms from all water sources cause approximately 940,000 infections each year in the United States.
The Solar Wind . . . Two instruments designed and built at Los Alamos National Laboratory are part of NASA's Polar satellite, launched in February. The instruments will gather data on the magnetosphere, a part of the earth's magnetic field that protects the planet from the solar wind, a stream of subatomic particles pouring from the sun. A magnetic storm caused by the solar wind can ruin satellites, disrupt communications and damage electrical power systems.
Rescued from Extinction . . . A single specimen of Showy Indian Clover, a California native plant that was presumed extinct more than a dozen years ago, was rescued in Sonoma County by naturalists John Maron and Peter Connors of the UC Davis Bodega Marine Reserve and Laboratory. Since the rescue, Connors has raised two generations of the plant with an eye toward eventually re-establishing it in the wild. Connors believes other native California grassland species may be threatened by extinction from grazing, competition with nonnative species and other changes caused by humans.
Surfin' Clams . . . UC Davis biomechanics researcher Olaf Ellers
found a type of clam that routinely jumps into the surf. In studies of
coquina clams on a North Carolina beach, Ellers reported that the tiny
clams feel the vibrations of the biggest waves, jump out of the sand to
ride the flow, and then put a foot out to dig in again. It's the first
known discovery of surfing clams. Ellers speculates the movement could
keep the animals close to food and protected from the sun's damaging rays.
Education at Risk . . . The U.S. Department of Education selected UC Santa Cruz to coordinate a five-year, $20-million effort designed to help students whose education is at risk. The project will bring together researchers from around the country to focus on four risk factors that jeopardize the success of students: limited English proficiency, race, poverty and geographic location. The goals of the project, which will reach from preschool through college, will be to identify the most effective strategies for helping at-risk students and to influence local and national policies.
A Step Forward? . . . Although one out of five American families
with children have at least one stepparent, legal policies regarding stepparents
and stepchildren are inconsistent, contradictory and downright archaic,
according to Mary Ann Mason, associate professor of social welfare at UC
Berkeley. Mason co-wrote a report that calls for state governments to treat
resident stepparents as de facto parents, with all the rights and responsibilities
of natural parents. The new status would obligate stepparents to support
the stepchildren they live with while giving them new authority and legal
standing to sue for visitation or custody rights.
Rise and Fall . . . A team of UC Santa Barbara scientists received a $650,000 grant from the W.M. Keck Foundation to begin a pioneering study on why marine populations rise and fall. The study should have practical implications for managing fisheries, maintaining biodiversity, monitoring the effects of pollutants and identifying biologically sensitive coastal areas.
Alcohol Study . . . David Takeuchi, a professor of sociology at UCLA, received a $1.4 million grant to study alcohol consumption patterns and disorders among Filipino-Americans in Hawaii and the San Francisco Bay area. The study, funded by the National Institute of Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse and the National Institutes of Health, is the largest-ever community epidemiological study conducted on Filipino-Americans.
Speech Recognition . . . The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders awarded a $480,000 grant to UCLA electrical engineer Abeer Alwan to develop computer models of how humans perceive speech, particularly in the presence of background noise. The models will be useful in the development of new hearing aids and speech recognition systems.
Micro-Grant . . . Said E. Elghobashi, professor of mechanical
and aerospace engineering at UC Irvine, received a four-year $400,000 grant
from NASA for microgravity research. Elghobashi was one of only 168 scientists
nationally to receive money under the microgravity research program.
Ives Fellow . . . Pablo Ortiz, assistant professor of music composition at UC Davis, was one of 15 American composers awarded a $12,500 Charles Ives Fellowship by the American Academy of Arts and Letters. The Ives fellowship is given to a "composer of extraordinary gifts."
Bruce Medal . . . Albert E. Whitford, astronomer emeritus at the UC Observatories/ Lick Observatory at UC Santa Cruz, received the 1996 Catherine Wolfe Bruce Medal from the Astronomical Society of the Pacific in honor of his lifetime accomplishments. Whitford is best known for his pioneering work in photoelectric photometry, which led to the first precise measurements of the magnitudes and colors of faint stars, star clusters and galaxies.
On to Japan . . . Jocelyn Millar, associate professor of entomology at UC Riverside, received a Japanese Government Research Award for Foreign Specialists to conduct research at the prestigious National Institute of Sericultural and Entomological Science in Japan. Millar is an authority on pheromones, the chemical cues insects use to communicate with one another.
Stommel Award . . . Joseph Reid, professor emeritus of physical oceanography at UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography, received The Henry Stommel Research Award from the Council of the American Meteorological Society. He was honored for fundamental contributions to the understanding of global ocean circulation.
Graduate Award . . . Scott A. Walker, a Ph.D. candidate in chemical
engineering at UC Santa Barbara, won a graduate student award from the
Materials Research Society for his innovative research on biologically
significant molecules called amphiphiles. The molecules are seen by scientists
as a possible drug delivery system to carry therapeutic agents directly
to the site of a bodily infection.
Compiled by Communications Services, Office of the President, steve.tokar@ucop.edu