University of Massachusetts Amherst - Office of News & Information

Thursday, May 15, 2008

 An Online Resource for Journalists
Daily News Summary

Each weekday morning, the Office of News and Information compiles a summary of news coverage about UMass Amherst and trends in higher education.
UMass Amherst

Headlines

UMass Amherst Professor Lee Badgett Can Comment on California Supreme Court Ruling on Gay Marriage

May 15, 2008

Submitted expert testimony that was cited in the decision

AMHERST, Mass. – M.V. Lee Badgett, professor of economics at the University of Massachusetts and an expert on the economic characteristics of same-sex couples, can comment on the California Supreme Court’s decision today overturning a ban on same-sex marriage. Badgett co-authored an amicus brief in support of gay marriage that was cited several times in the oral arguments by the chief justice describing the demographic and economic characteristics of same-sex couples in California. More...



Holler Named Associate Vice Chancellor for Facilities and Campus Services at UMass Amherst

May 15, 2008

AMHERST, Mass. – Juanita M. Holler has been named associate vice chancellor for facilities and campus services at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, according to Joyce Hatch, vice chancellor for administration and finance. More...



UMass Amherst Climate Change Expert Available to Speak on Changes in Arctic Sea Ice and Polar Bear Decision

May 14, 2008

AMHERST, Mass. – The the U.S. Department of the Interior is deciding whether polar bears should be listed as threatened by climate change under the Endangered Species Act, a decision that could impact drilling for petroleum in Alaska and force federal agencies to react to greenhouse gas emissions. Raymond S. Bradley, director of the University of Massachusetts Climate System Research Center, is available for expert comment on how climate change is affecting arctic sea ice, a major factor in the decline of polar bears, who use the sea ice as their hunting grounds. More...



Media Passes Are Required For Coverage of UMass Amherst Undergraduate Commencement

May 14, 2008

PRESS ADVISORY

Undergraduate Ceremony is Saturday, May 24

AMHERST, Mass. – Media passes will be required to gain access to the field at Warren P. McGuirk Alumni Stadium for coverage of the Undergraduate Commencement ceremonies at the University of Massachusetts Amherst on Saturday, May 24, at 12:30 p.m. More...



Six Honorary Degrees to Be Awarded By UMass Amherst at Commencement Ceremonies

May 13, 2008

Four to receive Distinguished Achievement Awards

AMHERST, Mass. – The University of Massachusetts Amherst will award six honorary degrees during its undergraduate and graduate commencement ceremonies May 23-24. More...



President Wilson to Recommend Rescinding Robert Mugabe Honorary Degree

May 12, 2008

BOSTON – President Jack M. Wilson today announced that he will recommend that the University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees rescind an honorary degree granted to Robert Mugabe in 1986. More...



UMass Amherst to Recognize 21st Century Leaders at Its Undergraduate Commencement May 24

May 8, 2008

AMHERST, Mass. – Eleven seniors will be presented with 21st Century Leaders awards during the 138th Commencement of the University of Massachusetts Amherst on Saturday, May 24 in Warren P. McGuirk Alumni Stadium. More...



UMass Amherst Electrical and Computer Engineers Gather for Senior Design Project Day on Friday, May 9

May 8, 2008

AMHERST, Mass. – A wireless drumstick and a sensor that warns drivers of cars that are about to run a red light are just two of the projects to be displayed on Friday, May 9 at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, as the latest crop of talented students from the electrical and computer engineering department (ECE) display their senior projects. More...



UMass Amherst Whiz Kids Compete in 2008 Technology Innovation Challenge on May 8

May 6, 2008

AMHERST, Mass. – The finals of the UMass Amherst Technology Innovation Challenge (TIC) - a competition on Friday, May 8 from 3:30 to 6:00 p.m. in Campus Center Room 1009, will award $80,000 in prize money and feature gadgetry normally found at an inventor''s expo. More...



Robert C. Holub Approved as UMass Amherst Chancellor

May 5, 2008

BOSTON – Acting on President Jack M. Wilson’s recommendation, the University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees today approved Dr. Robert C. Holub as the new Chancellor of the University’s flagship campus in Amherst. More...

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UMass Research

UMass Amherst Biologist Is Working To Limit the Environmental Impact of Hydroelectric Dams in Asia

AMHERST, Mass. – Rivers around the world are being tamed by massive hydroelectric dams, with high-profile projects under construction in Laos and China and several proposed for the Mekong River in Southeast Asia. Researcher Guy Lanza of the University of Massachusetts Amherst is working to limit the environmental impact of these projects, which he says often deliver a legacy of economic hardship and health problems instead of prosperity for people living near the dams and downstream.

Molecular Probes That Will Shed Light on Memory Formation, Learning, To Be Developed At UMass Amherst

AMHERST, Mass. – Receptors that play a role in learning and memory rapidly change their location and shape as signals travel through the nervous system. James Chambers of the University of Massachusetts Amherst and Ismail Hafez of the University of British Columbia have received a three-year, $750,000 grant from the Human Frontier Science Program to develop fluorescent tags called Tri-Probes, which will allow researchers to track these movements and changes in real time.

Metal Complexes That Could Change the Face of Explosives Detection Developed By UMass Amherst Researchers

AMHERST, Mass. – Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst have created complex molecules containing zinc for use in portable sensors that quickly and reliably detect the presence of plastic explosives, a pressing need for soldiers in Iraq and other hostile environments.

‘Portable Hug’ To Improve Quality of Life for Autistic Patients Takes Top Prize at UMass Amherst Competition

AMHERST, Mass. – The $50,000 grand prize in the Technology Innovation Challenge held at the University of Massachusetts Amherst has been won by Therapeutic Systems. Their concept business plans to market a novel “deep-pressure” vest that will improve mental health care and quality of life for people with mental illness, especially autism, by providing a “portable hug.”

Parasitic Flies That Control Invasive Winter Moths to Be Released May 9 in Wellesley by UMass Amherst Researchers

AMHERST, Mass. – A team of scientists led by Joseph Elkinton at the University of Massachusetts Amherst will release approximately 1,000 parasitic flies at Centennial Park in Wellesley on Friday, May 9 at 10 a.m. to control the winter moth, a new invasive species in eastern Massachusetts that is now in the process of stripping the foliage from many kinds of deciduous trees in towns that stretch from the North Shore to Cape Cod.

Rice Plants That Resist the Uptake of Arsenic Could Ease Rice Shortage, Says UMass Amherst Researcher

AMHERST, Mass. – More than 80 percent of the world’s population depends on rice as a staple food, but production is dropping in the rice paddies of Bangladesh, parts of India and South and East Asia due to toxic levels of arsenic in the topsoil. Om Parkash of the University of Massachusetts Amherst leads a research team that uses genetic engineering to produce rice plants that block the uptake of arsenic, which could increase production of this valuable crop and provide safer food supplies for millions.

Chemicals Used In Teflon, Scotchgard, Found In Human Milk from Massachusetts, Says UMass Amherst Researcher

AMHERST, Mass. – Chemicals used to make nonstick cookware and stain-resistant fabrics are spreading around the world and turning up in surprising places, everywhere from wildlife and drinking water supplies to human blood. Now, a team of researchers including Kathleen Arcaro of the University of Massachusetts Amherst has found these suspected carcinogens in samples of human milk from nursing mothers in Massachusetts.

UMass Amherst Chemist Receives $825,000 Grant to Study Proteins That Cause Cell Death in Humans

AMHERST, Mass. – Jeanne Hardy of the University of Massachusetts Amherst has received a five-year, $825,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health to unlock the secrets of a group of proteins called the executioner caspases, which control cell death and play a role in cancer, strokes, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.

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