UC Berkeley NewsCenterHeadlines from the University of California, BerkeleyOpen star clusters like Orion have low fertility rate- (Found July 15, 2008 ) A detailed survey of stars in the Orion Nebula has found that fewer than 10 percent have enough surrounding dust to make Jupiter-sized planets. The study, one of the first using the new CARMA radio array, was conducted by astronomers at UC Berkeley, Caltech and the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/07/07_eisner.shtml Nature reserves attract humans, but at a cost to biodiversity, says study- (Found July 15, 2008 ) Countering a perception that establishing nature reserves in developing nations drives away local communities, a new UC Berkeley study finds that human settlements are actually drawn to protected areas in Africa and Latin America. Unfortunately, the researchers also found a link between high rates of human population growth and illegal harvesting of timber, bushmeat hunting and species extinction.http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/07/03_nature.shtml Strike under way at UC campuses- (Found July 15, 2008 ) Union service workers at the University of California's 10 campuses began a planned five-day strike Monday, despite a San Francisco judge's restraining order prohibiting them from walking off the job without giving adequate notice.http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/07/14_afscme.shtml Center takes aim at infectious diseases- (Found July 15, 2008 ) HIV, tuberculosis, malaria and a dozen other neglected diseases place a terrible medical burden upon developing nations, in many cases because vaccines and treatments do not exist and aren't commercially viable to develop. UC Berkeley is stepping into the breach with the Center for Emerging and Neglected Diseases, which aims to bring together innovative ideas and patient treatments.http://sciencematters.berkeley.edu/archives/volume5/issue38/story1.php Poet Alfred Arteaga, professor of Chicano and ethnic studies, dies at 58- (Found July 15, 2008 ) Alfred Arteaga, a UC Berkeley professor of Chicano and ethnic studies, a pioneer in post-colonial and ethnic minority literature studies and an important early Chicano movement poet, has died at age 58.http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/07/11_arteaga.shtml Award-winning librarian explores controversy of presidential signing statements- (Found July 15, 2008 ) It didn't take long for Berkeley Law reference librarian I-Wei Wang to boost her employer's reputation. Less than a year and a half on the job, she has won the American Association of Law Libraries' award for her paper on how presidential signing statements have changed both the law and the way librarians keep track of it.http://www.law.berkeley.edu/news/2008/wang061708.html High fructose corn syrup — not such sweet news- (Found July 15, 2008 ) Sugar has become nutrition enemy No.1, with Americans eating far more of it than they did a half century ago. But the main culprit isn’t those white sugar crystals; it's fructose, a ubiquitous sweetener that poses special health problems, the UC Berkeley Wellness Letter reports.http://www.berkeleywellness.com/html/wl/wlFeatured.html Genes could solve pollution mysteries- (Found July 15, 2008 ) Scientists have for the first time identified environmental pollutants using a genomic approach. This new gene-based technique could lead to better and faster lab tests for pinpointing pollutants in contaminated ecosystems.http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/07/10_daphnia.shtml Campus gives remaining tree-sitters a nutritional boost- (Found July 15, 2008 ) Campus officials have announced that they will increase the amount of food the university is supplying to the four protesters occupying a single redwood tree outside Memorial Stadium.http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/06/stad-update.shtml |