News for Faculty and Staff of the University of California, Riverside • Volume 7, Number 8 • April 27, 2011 • InsideUCR.ucr.edu
Town Hall Meeting
on May 12
Chancellor White: Our Undercover Boss
Chancellor Timothy P. White will host a
Town Hall Meeting starting at 12:10 p.m.
May 12 in HUB 302, where he will provide
an update on the budget.
Gov. Brown proposed a $500 million cut
to the University of California. UCR would be
expected to absorb approximately $37 million of that amount, or 18 percent of UCR’s
existing state appropriation. Add to that cost
increases for utilities and other goods and
services, and it is easy to see that the campus will have to cut spending or increase revenue from other sources.
The meeting will be webcast live and will
also be archived at chancellor.ucr.edu/webcast_archive.html. To submit a question or
comment, send it to townhall@ucr.edu.
A list of people serving on a Chancellor’s
Budget Advisory Council can be found on the
Budget News and Information Web site at
budget.ucr.edu/chair_cabinet.html.
Chancellor White trades his suit and
tie to experience life as “Pete” on
the frontlines of his campus, on the
season finale of “Undercover Boss.”
Faculty, Students Named
Fulbright Scholars
By Bettye Miller
Two faculty members and four students
have been awarded prestigious Fulbright
awards for international study and research,
and an Indonesian scholar of Southeast
Asian history will spend a year on the campus as a Fulbright scholar in residence for the
2011-12 academic year.
“This was an exceptional year of Fulbright
awards recognizing international study and
research at UCR,” said Diane Elton, director of the university’s International Education
Center. Half of the UCR students who applied
for 2010-11 were granted Fulbright awards in
the annual competition.
Faculty winners, whose awards begin this
spring, are: David A. Biggs, assistant professor
of history, who will spend five months in Hue
City, Vietnam, for his research project, “War
in the Landscape: Environmental Effects of a
‘Hot War’ in the Urban and Rural Landscapes
of Thua Thien Hue Province, Vietnam”; and
Dmitri A. Maslov, professor of biology, who
will spend four months in the Czech Republic, “Strengthening Collaboration Ties With the
University of Southern Bohemia.”
Baskara T. Wardaya, S.J., a lecturer in history, religion and politics at Sanata Dharma
University and the Graduate School of Gadjah
Mada University, both in Yogyakarta, will be a
scholar in residence for the 2011-12 academic year in the UCR Department of History. Wardaya also is director of the Center for History
and Political Ethics at Sanata Dharma University and a consultant for the Jesuit Refugee
Service Asia-Pacific in Bangkok.
“UC Riverside worked closely with local
partners including the city of Riverside, the
Riverside Unified School District, Riverside
City College, and others to develop a program
of outreach and engagement for Dr. Wardaya
during his visit,” said Randolph Head, chair
of the history department. “He will not only
teach students at UC Riverside, but will also
join student groups and community events in
the region as a representative of Indonesia’s
scholarly, public, and national achievements.”
Four Ph.D. candidates are concluding
research activity funded in 2010-11 by Fulbright grants.
They are: Alicia Bolton, anthropology,
“Brazil’s Invisible Children”; Sarah Grant,
anthropology, “Manufacturing Quality: Vietnam in the Global Coffee Industry”; Kelly
Meister, theology/religion, “Education, Death
and the End of the World: How the Abhidhamma Shapes and Is Shaped by Buddhist Practice in Thailand”; and Jacob Rekedal, Ph.D.
ethnomusicology, “Mapuche Culture and Performance, and the Politics of Representation
in Chile.”
Competition for the next funding cycle
begins May 1.
Interested students should create a profile
at www.fulbrightonline.org/us. For more information contact Diane Elton at diane.elton@ucr.
edu.
By Kris Lovekin
The mission seemed impossible. Take the
leader of a public research university and hide
him in plain sight for a week. But the mission
was a success and the campus will be featured
on the second season finale of the hit CBS reality show “Undercover Boss,” 9 p.m. Sunday,
May 1.
This is the first time an academic institution has been featured on the Emmy-nominated show.
Chancellor Timothy P. White, who has
served as UCR’s highly visible chief executive
for the past three years, crops his hair short and
dons a mustache, false teeth, and an earring in
a show that lets him take on the everyday work
of the students, staff and faculty. During the
show, he lives as “Pete,” which happens to be
his middle name.
He shadowed a campus tour guide, an
assistant professor of chemistry, a student
worker in the library and an assistant track
coach, all undercover. In the process, he said,
he was changed as a chancellor.
“Seeing the campus from the inside out
only strengthened my respect for the way a
public research university changes lives and
creates value every day,” he said. “I was moved
Chancellor Timothy P. White (left); “Pete” (right).
as a person and as a leader by the level of
dedication of our students, staff and faculty.”
The secret had to be guarded carefully
for weeks in advance, a tall order at a public
university where the culture is typically about
sharing information and doing the public’s
work. Dozens of employees cooperated with
requests that must have seemed completely
mysterious and odd.
The chancellor said he is keeping the very
short haircut as a symbol of an amazing experience. “I’m going to have to lose the earring,
though,” he said.
Give Your Tartan Soul to UCR
By Kim Lane
UC Riverside’s Student Life office is asking
staff and faculty to give their Tartan Soul when
they come to work each day.
That doesn’t necessarily mean wearing a
blue and gold kilt or toting a bagpipe around
campus.
It’s actually about embracing four core
values: integrity, accountability, excellence
and respect, said Ellen Whitehead, a student
affairs officer from Student Life.
“We are asking staff and faculty to embody
these values in every part of their work,” said
Whitehead. “It’s a good way to bring us all
together, to have pride in what we do and make
us aware that we are role models for our students and even the community as a whole.”
The Tartan Soul program was launched by
Student Life in 2009 in response to the core
values, which were developed by the UC Office
of the President.
Tartan Soul was originally designed to target new students and was rolled out as part of
the summer Bear Facts Orientation.
A tartan is a pattern consisting of hori-
zontal and vertical bands in multiple colors.
UCR’s official trademarked tartan — royal
blue crisscrossed with black, white and gold
stripes — can be seen across campus.
Each of the colors in that tartan represents
one of the UC-established core values: royal
blue is integrity; white, accountability; gold,
excellence; and black, respect.
One thing that Whitehead is asking faculty
and staff to do is to nominate other faculty,
staff or students who embody the core values.
Those chosen will be featured in the spotlight section of the Tartan Soul website, said
Whitehead.
“We want to acknowledge those people
who give their Tartan Soul to UCR,” she said.
“These are the people who make UCR a great
place to work and learn.”
Aaron Bushong, an academic advisor in
CNAS and a UCR alumnus, is the first employee representative to be feature on the Tartan
Soul website. Nominated in the category of
integrity, Bushong “…takes on tasks with the
utmost professionalism and positive spirit. As
Earth Week at UCR
Earth Week was held from April 18 to 22. UCR celebrated with various events, such as
booths that displayed eco-friendly devices and performances that promoted healthy habits for
the environment.
Above, Chancellor Timothy P. White, EPA Regional Administrator Jared Blumenfeld, Jacqueline Zaldana, John Cook and Thomas Kwan plant a magnolia tree in front of Pierce Hall and
Science Laboratories 1 as part of the Earth Week Tree Planting Ceremony, which also celebrated
a partnership between UCR and the EPA.
Right top: John Cook and student Weston Lewis sit in the Earth Week booth; right bottom:
Photos by Konrad Nagy and Kim Lane
students check out a solar cooker.
Photos courtesy of CBS
UNDERCOVER BOSS
Chancellor White will be featured on “Undercover Boss” at 9
p.m., May 1 on CBS.
Find out more at chancellor.ucr.edu/ub or visit the CBS
“Undercover Boss” website at
www.cbs.com/primetime/undercover_boss.
a strong advocate for excellence in UCR education and students, Aaron is a model representative of our institution and someone who
students, faculty and staff should look up to as
an example of integrity.”
Nominations can be made by visiting the
website at tartansoul.ucr.edu and clicking on
“Spotlights.” The site also offers four screensavers and a variety of logos for personal and
departmental use.
UCR’s Staff Assembly has also adopted the
Tartan Soul values. This year the organization
will present the inaugural Staff Tartan Soul
Award, along with its other staff awards.
“I believe so many of our staff already
embrace these values — integrity, accountability, excellence and respect,” said Steve Lerer,
Staff Assembly vice president/president elect.
“They deserve recognition for their dedication
to our campus and our students.”
A nomination form for the award is available at www.surveygizmo.com/s/459876/staffassembly-award-nomination-form.
Find out more about the Tartan Soul program at tartansoul.ucr.edu.
page 2
• April 27, 2011
•
www.InsideUCR.ucr.edu
Getting Personal
Who Says?
Name: Andrew Larratt-Smith
Department: Office of the Ombudsman
Job: Ombudsman
Length of employment at UCR: Since January
My work: Anyone who has a university-related problem, or is in
conflict with someone on campus, or thinks they may have been
treated unfairly may consult the ombudsman. The pillars of my
practice are: independence, confidentiality, impartiality and informality. I will discuss a situation with a visitor privately, explain
Andrew Larratt-Smith
what policies may apply, and generate options and strategies for
resolution. I may also serve as an impartial mediator to resolve conflicts. My office functions independently
of other administrative structures and does not take sides in any matter. Examples of issues that have been
brought to the ombudsman include grade disputes, workplace conflicts, unfair treatment, clarifications on
university policies and ethical violations.
Things you should know: I am a Canadian, born and raised in Toronto before coming south of the border nearly
19 years ago for college. There I met my wife, Jen, who eventually succeeded in dragging me to her childhood
homeland of Southern California. I recently returned to school for not one but two degrees: a J.D. from UCLA
School of Law (I don’t give legal advice) and a masters in dispute resolution from Pepperdine University (I do
help resolve disputes). Currently, I reside in West Los Angeles and spend my commute “reading” books on
tape and listening to NPR. We are hoping to move closer to UCR soon. My dream is to own a home with a yard
containing citrus trees, an avocado tree, and a barbecue. I love strategy games (Settlers of Catan or Dominion
anyone?). Sadly, I have not had much time to play lately. My wife and I have a 2-year-old daughter, Junia, and
a 2-month-old son, William. They are wonderful but they keep us on our toes.
Living the Promise Website Gets Webby Award
By Kim Lane
UC Riverside’s Living the Promise website has been named an
official honoree by the 15th annual
Webby Awards.
Presented by the International
Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, Webby Awards are considered
the foremost international honor for
excellence and are sometimes called
the Oscars of the Internet. More than
10,000 nominations are received. Of
those, only 10 percent are selected
for recognition
“Being chosen as an honoree for
a Webby award is a true mark of distinction,” said Peter Hayashida, vice
chancellor for advancement. “I am
proud of the staff and faculty who
worked diligently to make this site a
premier showcase for UC Riverside’s
excellence in research and teaching.”
Developed by the Office of Strategic Communications with support
from consulting firm Web Advanced,
the Living the Promise website is
• Kaila Bennett, bioengineering
(advisor David Lo), therapeutic
approaches to the treatment of
HIV-AIDS.
• Ian Breckenridge-Jackson, sociology (advisor Ellen Reese), the
role of economically privileged
outsiders in societal movement
“Many of these corporations do not understand that there is an issue.
Many of these corporations, rightfully so, understand the issues with
other minority groups because of the historical context in the U.S. But in
this case, with regards to Asian-Americans, they just don’t see it.”
Thomas Sy, assistant professor of psychology, on his studies that
show that Asians are seen as lacking the charisma needed to be top
leaders.
NPR
“Clearly (Fukushima) is not as bad as it can get and not as bad as Chernobyl. Even if the amount of radiation released at Fukushima is of the
same order of magnitude as Chernobyl ... the effect on health appears
to be far lower due to the differences in the event and response to the
event.”
Kenneth Barish, professor of physics, on speculation that the
Fukushima crisis ranks at the same level as the Chernobyl disaster
in terms of international nuclear accidents.
REUTERS
“Ask yourself, ‘How good a job do I really need to do?’ Some things are
not important enough to warrant perfection.”
John Perry, professor of philosophy, on techniques that help to reduce procrastination, especially in overachievers and perfectionists.
CNN
“People who like very sweet fruit are going to find ‘KinnowLS’ to be very
appealing. When other citrus varieties mature to reach the level of sweetness of ‘KinnowLS,’ their other qualities — such as rind texture — are in
decline. Neither ‘Kinnow’ nor ‘KinnowLS’ suffer in this way.”
Mikeal Roose, professor of genetics, on KinnowLS, a new citrus
variety being produced at UCR.
RED ORBIT
part of a national marketing campaign designed to tell the story of
how world-class research at UC Riverside impacts lives not just at the
state level, but nationally and globally as well.
When it was first unveiled in May
2010 the site featured the work of
19 faculty members in the areas of
health, technology and environmental sustainability. An additional 24
faculty members were recently add-
ed to the site, as well as the research
area of public policy.
The site includes photography,
videos, faculty profiles, Q&A’s and
downloadable desktop and smart
phone wallpaper backgrounds to
showcase some of the applied
research of the campus. It also lists
ways people can connect with the
campus through social media channels such as Facebook, YouTube and
Twitter.
Seventeen Students Get Fellowships from NSF
By Lucas Joel
At a quarter past midnight on
April 5, the National Science Foundation (NSF) e-mailed 2,000 U.S.
graduate students notifying them
that they had been awarded a coveted Graduate Research Fellowship
(GRF).
Seventeen UC Riverside graduate students got that NSF e-mail,
which began with the word “Congratulations.”
UCR graduate students secured
a record eight fellowships in 2010.
With the 17 awardees announced
this month, that number more than
doubled.
The NSF GRF application process is very competitive. To earn
a fellowship a candidate must
demonstrate an outstanding ability to design and execute scientific
research, and must also be able
to show how his or her work will
contribute to their chosen field as
well as to society as a whole. Each
awardee receives an annual stipend
of $30,000 and an annual $10,500
cost-of-tuition allowance for three
years.
The UCR awardees and their
research projects are:
• Jonathan Ashby, chemistry
(advisor Wenwan Zhong), how
nanoparticles interact with proteins within the human body.
“Genes constitute about one-third of the factors leading to long life. The
other two-thirds have to do with lifestyles and chance.”
Howard Friedman, professor of psychology, on research that
debunks myths about happiness and health.
NEW YORK TIMES
activity in New Orleans post-Hurricane Katrina.
• Erin Brinton, plant biology (advisor Julia Bailey-Serres), the
molecular responses of corn to
flooding and ways to improve
flooding tolerance in modern
corn cultivars.
• Arezou Cavanaugh, psychology
(advisor Kate Sweeny), how selfviews influence the way individuals navigate uncertain life
events.
• Gerald Claghorn, evolution, ecology and organismal biology (advisor Ted Garland), addiction,
hyperactivity and other disorders.
• Jessica Diaz, plant biology (advisor Patricia Springer), rice shoot
development.
• Kirby Farah, anthropology (advisor Wendy Ashmore), will co-create a public archaeology project
regarding the Maya Caste War of
Yucatan, Mexico.
• Gabrielle Goodman, bioengineering (advisor Masaru Rao), development of a neural prosthetic
device aimed at restoring sensory
and motor function loss.
• Lucas Joel, geological sciences
(advisor Mary Droser), using 550
million-year-old trace fossils to
better constrain the earliest origins of large-scale animal life on
the planet.
• Tamar Khafi, psychology (advisor
Tuppett Yates), filial responsibility within a cultural-ecological
theoretical framework.
• Vicente Nunez, bioengineering
(advisor Valentine Vullev), techniques aimed at speeding the
detection and identification of
bacteria in contaminated samples, such as those found in a
patient’s wound or blood, or contaminated water.
• Alexandria Pivovaroff, plant biology (advisor Louis Santiago), how
California native plants and invasive plants handle drought.
• Noriko Sausman, bioengineering (advisor Dimitrios Morikis),
research relevant to the human
antimicrobial peptide.
• Shana Welles, plant biology (advisor Norman Ellstrand), what
causes certain plant species to
become invasive species.
•Emily Wooton, geological sciences
(advisors Mary Droser and Gordon
Love), community restructuring
and environmental perturbations
surrounding the Late Devonian
Mass Extinction.
• Robert Young, chemistry (advisor
Leonard Mueller), protein structure and function using nuclear
magnetic resonance spectroscopy.
Also, 18 UCR graduate students
in the following fields received honorable mentions for their NSF GRF
applications: bioengineering; chemical and environmental engineering; geological sciences; genetics,
genomics and bioinformatics; plant
biology; evolution, ecology and
organismal biology; entomology; cell,
molecular and developmental biology; neuroscience; physics; psychology; mechanical engineering.
“Not long ago, after reading a book about time management, I decided
to keep track of how I spent every hour of my week over the course of five
weeks. When I added up my average leisure reading (including newspapers and books), it amounted to an average of 2.5 hours per day. That’s a
lot of hours that I could be doing something else! But I don’t regret it in
the least. Life is short, and, as someone who studies happiness, I like to
say that I practice what I preach.”
Sonja Lyubomirsky, professor of psychology, on leisure time and
activities, and their effects on happiness.
THE CHRONICLE OF HIGHER EDUCATION
“There’s no doubt in my mind that teamed up again [Katie Couric and
Matt Lauer] could bring back people in their mid-30s to daytime-afternoon television and then perhaps curb them up for something later in
the evening.”
Toby Miller, professor of media and cultural studies, on the end of
Oprah Winfrey’s talk show as she moves to her own cable channel,
and potential programs that could fill the void left by her absence.
MARKETPLACE
“What Mom eats, drinks and breathes can have a tremendous long-term
impact on the child, resulting in developmental enhancements or delays.”
Kelly Huffman, assistant professor of psychology, on research that
shows that the behavior of a mom-to-be may influence her child’s
future smarts.
FORBES ONLINE
To become a media source or to announce upcoming
published research or an award, contact the Office of Strategic
Communications at (951) 827-6397 or (951) UCR-NEWS or
insideucr@ucr.edu.
UCR Recognizes Innovative Teaching
The Academy of Distinguished
Teachers hosted this year’s winners of the UCR Innovative Teaching Award — Professor Bahram
Mobasher, from astronomy, and
Professor Cynthia Larive, from
chemistry.
Mobasher and Larive received
the awards at an event held on April
20.
Both delivered a lecture at the
event.
Mobasher’s lecture was on “The
Amazing Art of Astronomy.”
He finds that
while the sciences, the arts and
the
humanities
are seemingly far
apart, astronomy
is a bridge that
Bahram
spans them.
M o b a s h e r Mobasher
described how he uses the latest
discoveries in the field of astronomy to get scientists interested in
humanities, and artists interested
in science.
Mobasher discussed how the
journey of discovery through astronomy is fundamentally about where
we fit in the grand cosmic picture.
Larive’s lecture was on “OpenAccess Active Learning Resources
For
Analytical
Chemistry.” While
most
chemistry courses are
still taught from
textbooks, Larive
discussed
how
digital resources Cynthia
are having a tre- Larive
mendous impact on teaching and
learning, including in her field of
analytical chemistry.
Her presentation showed how
a tool like the Analytical Sciences Digital Library (www.asdlib.
org), which is a collection of peerreviewed, web-based resources
on chemical measurements and
instrumentation, can do much to
serve an interactive and engaged
community of users.
www.InsideUCR.ucr.edu
Research & Scholarship
Fellowship Funds Entomology
Research
Maiara Severo, a Ph.D. student
working with Joao Pedra, an assistant professor of entomology, has
received a $20,000 international
fellowship from the American Association of University Women (AAUW),
a nationwide network that advances
equity for women and girls through
advocacy, education, philanthropy
and research.
Recipients are selected for academic achievement and demonstrated commitment to women and girls.
For the 2010-11, 41 fellowships
were awarded from more than 1,200
eligible applicants representing 103
countries.
The title of Severo’s fellowship is
“Conservation of Innate Immunity to
Vector-borne Pathogens.”
She will characterize evolutionary conserved genes involved in vector-borne immunity.
Swanson Keynote Speaker at
Population Conference
David Swanson, professor of
sociology, delivered the keynote
address at the 21st annual Warren
E. Kalbach Population Conference at
the University of Albert, Edmonton,
Alberta, Canada, in March. Approxi-
mately 100 people attended the
conference.
Swanson’s address, “Demography: A Four-Field View,” described
the four functions of scholarship
articulated in 1997 by Ernest Boyer
in “Scholarship Reconsidered” —
discovery, integration, application
and teaching — and provided demographic examples of them.
Salzman to talk about “The
Moving City”
Michele Salzman, professor of
history, is one of two keynote speakers at a conference, “The Moving
City: Processions, Passages and
Promenades
in
Ancient
Rome,”
at the Norweigian Institute in
Rome May 2-4.
Salzman also will
chair a workshop,
Michele
“Commemorating
Salzman
the Dead.”
The conference is organized by
the Norwegian and Swedish institutes in Rome, Gothenburg University and the FocusRome Project.
Eyewitness Testimony Subject of
NSF Lecture
Psychology
professor
Steven
Clark discussed improving eyewitness testimony in an address that
was part of the National Science
Foundation’s Distinguished Lecture
Series on April 18 in Arlington, Va.
Clark, who is internationally
known as an expert on human learning and memory, argued that new
procedures aimed at improving eyewitness identifications may be based
on a false premise. To make sound
public policy, the justice system
needs to apply better theories about
how people remember and make
decisions, he said, and new policy
frameworks must be developed that
better connect eyewitness research
to public policy.
Developing Global Leaders
Thomas Sy, assistant professor
of psychology, will be a presenter at
General Electric’s national leadership forum in Boston May 23-24.
His topic is developing global leaders. The forum is a leadership conference that will be attended by
more than 600 employees from GE
and other major corporations.
He also will discuss leadership
perceptions of Asian-Americans at
the Global International Forum on
Neuroscience in Nanjing, Jiangsu,
China, in July.
Awards & Honors
Entomologist Honored
The Pacific Branch of the Entomological Society of America (ESA)
has honored several UCR entomologists with awards.
Faculty recipients are:
• Timothy Paine, Distinguished
Achievement Award in Teaching
• Joseph Morse, Award for
Excellence in Integrated Pest
Management
In addition, the following Ph.D.
students received honors:
• Casey Butler (John Trumble
lab), Comstock Graduate Student Award
• Deane Zahn (Joseph Morse
lab), Student Activity Award
• Kristen Hladun (John Trumble
lab), first place, poster presentation
• Chrissy Mogren (John Trumble
lab), second place, poster
presentation
The Pacific Branch of the ESA
gave the awards out at its meeting
held March 27-30.
Walling Recognized for Work on
Plant Response
Linda Walling, a professor of
genetics in the Department of Botany and Plant Sciences, has been
awarded a 2011 Fellow of ASPB
(American Society of Plant Biologists) Award for her contributions
in the areas of plant response and
plant/insect interactions, and her
long-standing service to the scientific community. She is the third
UCR faculty to be honored with this
award. Others are Natasha Raikhel
and Julia Bailey-Serres.
Walling has a long history of
mentoring junior scientists at all
levels and serving ASPB in numerous capacities. She also served as
associated dean of biological sciences for more than six years, during
which time she played a significant
role in revamping the biological sciences undergraduate curriculum
and developing mentoring resources
for the academic community. She
was the driving force behind UCR’s
Survival and Leadership Skills for
Academe (SALSA) program, which
provides mentoring and training for
postdocs and junior faculty in the
sciences. She has served on the editorial board of Plant Physiology.
The Fellow of ASPB award was
established in 2007 to recognize
distinguished and long-term contributions to plant biology and service
by current members in areas including research, education, mentoring,
outreach, and professional and public service. Award recipients have
contributed to the Society for at
least 10 years.
Yates Named Fellow to Academy
Marylynn V. Yates, a professor
of environmental microbiology, has
been elected a fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology. Fellows are elected
annually through
a highly selective,
peer-reviewed
process, based on
their records of
scientific achievement and original Marylynn V.
contributions that Yates
have advanced microbiology. This
year 78 microbiologists were elected
to fellowship in the academy. The
academy’s more than 2,500 fellows
represent subspecialties of microbiology, including basic and applied
research, teaching, public health,
industry and government service.
Balandin Gets International
Award
Alexander Balandin, a professor
of electrical engineering and founding chair of a campuswide Materials
Science and Engineering Program,
was selected to receive the international Pioneer of Nanotechnology
Award for 2011, the Nanotechnology Council of IEEE, formerly known
Chancellor: Timothy P. White
Vice Chancellor for University Advancement: Peter A. Hayashida
Assistant Vice Chancellor for Strategic Communications: James Grant
Editor: Kim Lane
Editorial Assistant: Konrad Nagy
Inside UCR is published by the Office of Strategic Communications,
twice monthly, except December, July, August and September, when it is
published once a month.
Send story ideas and comments to InsideUCR@ucr.edu. Issues are available
online at www.insideucr.ucr.edu.
as the Institute
for Electrical and
Electronics Engineers.
He was chosen
for his pioneering
work in nanotechnology that could Alexander
have far-reaching Balandin
impacts on electronic devices.
Balandin will receive the award
and give a keynote talk at the organization’s conference in Portland, Ore.
in mid-August. Only one university
professor is selected for this award
each year.
Balandin is the first professor in
the University of California system to
receive the award. Previous recipients include distinguished professors from the University of Toronto,
Yale University and the University of
Michigan. Last year’s award recipient was internationally renowned
scientist Phaedon Avouris from the
IBM T.J. Watson Research Centre in
Yorktown Heights, N.Y.
“It’s really an honor, especially
considering the people who have
received this award before me,”
Balandin said.
•
April 27, 2011
•
page 3
To Test or Not to Test
By Bettye Miller
In a study of what motivates or
discourages consumers from participating in direct-to-consumer
(DTC) genetic testing, UC Riverside
psychologists found that potential
users of the tests were influenced
by perceived benefits and barriers to
testing, and anticipated regret over
testing versus not testing.
Consumers decide whether to
use mail-in genetic tests based on
both rational and emotional reasons,
a finding that adds to a growing body
of health care behavior research on
information seeking and avoidance,
they found.
“We were interested in examining how people perceive DTC genetic
testing and how information about
the procedure might influence their
interest in testing, not about the
advantages or disadvantages of the
testing procedure itself,” said Kate
Sweeny, assistant professor of psychology and lead author of “Predictors of interest in direct-to-consumer
genetic testing.”
The paper appears in the online
edition of the peer-reviewed journal
Psychology & Health.
With the completion of the U.S.
Human Genome Project, which
mapped the genes responsible for
physical and functional traits, the
number of direct-to-consumer genetic tests has exploded. Hundreds of
private labs offering the tests provide
consumers with information about
genetic health factors and ancestry
after they return a saliva sample in
a mail-from-home kit. The U.S. Food
and Drug Administration decided
earlier this year to limit the controversial tests on a case-by-case basis.
Sweeny and graduate student
Angela Legg surveyed 99 volunteers
about perceived benefits of genetic
testing (increased knowledge of
personal and family health risks),
perceived barriers to testing (i.e.
lack of governmental regulation, the
potential misinterpretation of genetic
information), anticipated regret over
testing or not testing, and intention
to pursue the tests.
Volunteers were randomly divided into three groups and presented
with different kinds of information
– either positive information about
DTC genetic testing, negative information, or both positive and negative
information.
Participants who received only
positive information perceived the
greatest benefits of DTC genetic testing, anticipated the greatest regret
over missing the opportunity to test,
and expressed greater intentions to
pursue testing, Sweeny and Legg
found. Participants who received only
negative information perceived greater barriers to testing, anticipated the
greatest regret over testing, and did
not differ from people who received
both positive and negative information in their intentions to test.
One conclusion of the study is
that decisions about DTC genetic
testing are similar in some ways to
other types of health decisions, for
example, that perceptions of costs
and benefits of the behavior play
a strong role in decision-making,
Sweeny said.
Reznick Elected to Prestigious Society
David Reznick, a professor of
biology, has been elected a member
of the American Academy of Arts
and Sciences, one of the nation’s
most prestigious honorary societies
and a leading center for independent policy research.
With his election, Reznick joins
some of the world’s most accomplished leaders from academia,
business, public affairs, the humanities and the arts. Members contribute to studies at the academy of
science and technology policy, global security, social policy and American institutions, the humanities and
education.
A total of 212 new members were
elected to the academy this year.
Among the 2011 class of scholars,
scientists, writers, artists, civic, cor-
porate, and philanthropic leaders are
winners of the Nobel, Pulitzer and
Pritzker prizes; the Turing Award;
MacArthur and Guggenheim fellowships; and Kennedy Center Honors,
Grammy, Golden Globe and Academy awards.
“This is a wonderful surprise and
honor,” Reznick said. “I value this
recognition a great deal because I
know that it represents some assessment of my career by a group of
peers. I had no idea I was being considered for any such recognition. It
just came out of the blue.”
Reznick studies evolution and
performs experiments on natural
populations of organisms. He is the
author of “The Origin Then and Now:
An Interpretive Guide to the Origin
of Species.”
Santiago in Program to Advance Excellence at Hispanic-serving Institutions
By Iqbal Pittalwala
Louis Santiago, an assistant professor of botany and plant sciences
and a member of the Center for Conservation Biology, has been selected
to participate in the 2011 U.S.
Department of Agriculture E. Kika
de la Garza Fellowship program. As
a fellow, he will be part of a network
of leaders from academia, government and nonprofit organizations
that work to advance the excellence
of education at Hispanic-serving
institutions.
The one-year fellowship will
allow Santiago to spend two weeks
in Washington, D.C., this summer
during which where he will meet
with program officers at USDA and
other federal agencies to identify
mutual collaborative interests.
“Many Hispanic immigrants in
California have agricultural roots,
and have both a tremendous traditional agricultural knowledge and
a need to formalize this knowledge
into careers in the natural and agricultural sciences,” Santiago said.
“Indeed, about half of the produce
in Mexico is still produced on small
family farms.”
Fortino Morales, an undergradu-
Louis Santiago (left) and Fortino Morales in the lab.
ate student working in Santiago’s
lab, inspired him to apply for the
fellowship.
“Fortino is interested in agriculture and often spends his weekends
with a grassroots student group that
advocates food production systems
based on agricultural sustainability,”
Santiago said. “He spends nearly
every weekend attending conferences, or working in the student community garden on campus.”
Santiago believes this level of
Photo by Iqbal Pittalwala
dedication illustrates the potential of
Hispanic students at UCR to become
part of a well-trained workforce in
agricultural and natural resource
management.
“Participating in the fellowship
program will allow me to establish
grants, partnerships, or other agreements with the USDA and other
agencies that can provide the opportunities, experience, and training for
students like Fortino to work at state
and federal levels,” he said.
page 4
•
April 27, 2011
•
www.InsideUCR.ucr.edu
Recognizing A Good Job
By Konrad Nagy
Working hard and making positive social
impacts should be the goals of any employee,
but that doesn’t mean those efforts should go
unnoticed.
That is why UCR’s Staff Assembly has
launched its blitz of staff recognition programs aimed at just that — recognition.
Staff Assembly sponsors various awards,
both annual and monthly, that are available
to acknowledge those staff members who
have in some way, made a difference in their
workplace or community.
Eligibility extends to any career staff
member in good standing. Managers are
encouraged to nominate deserving employees
to validate hard work and foster efficiency.
Awards are:
• Outstanding Staff Awards, a series of
annual awards designed to honor staff
who embody standards of excellence
and dedication. Awards are given to
four individuals, one staff member representing each UCR employment group
(service, administrative, technical and
professional.)
• People Helping People, an annual award
given for volunteer and community service performed between June of last year
thorough May of this year. Recipients
receive a $250 donation to the charity
of their choice.
Diversity Workshops Open to all Staff and Faculty
• Volunteer of the Year is bestowed annually upon a staff member with an outstanding volunteer service record working with
Staff Assembly.
•Tartan Soul is given annually to an individual based on their strength in any
or all of the four Tartan Soul criteria:
excellence, accountability, integrity and
respect.
• Diversity is presented to a staff member
based on an above and beyond commitment to diversity in the UCR community.
• The Get Recognized, a monthly award
that recognizes any staff member who
makes his or her department and/or the
campus a better place to work. Winners of this award receive a $30 meal at
Arroyo Vista Café.
• R’Day Photo, a monthly contest that asks
staff to submit pictures showing staff
wearing blue-and-gold gear for R’Day.
Winners are selected at random and
receive sweet treats for their group or
department.
To submit a nomination, visit staffassembly.ucr.edu and find the appropriate
form under the Staff Recognition Programs
link. The deadline is 5 p.m. May 2.
For more information contact Alaxis Timothy, awards chair at alaxis.timothy@ucr.edu
or (951) 827-1546.
Symposium Offers Forum on Climate Change
The Earth Sciences Department is hosting the 2nd annual Graduate Student Science of Climate Change Symposium on April
30 in Engineering 2, Room 138, from 9 a.m.
to 5 p.m. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m.
The symposium is open to the public and
will feature the research of graduate students
whose work relates to the science of climate
change.
“Public participation at the symposium
will create a direct channel of communication
between scientists and community members,
and will help suppress the confusion arising
from the portrayal of climate change in the
media,” said Baird King, one of the symposium coordinators and a junior research specialist in the Department of Earth Sciences.
Guest speaker Charlie Zender, a professor of Earth system science at UC Irvine, will
give a talk titled “Climate Effects of Combustion and Dust Aerosols in Snow.”
More information is available at
scienceofclimatechange.ucr.edu.
Get Involved: Run for Staff Assembly Board
UCR’s Staff Assembly is seeking nominations for staff who would like to serve on the
2011-12 executive board.
Available positions are vice president (a
three-year appointment), treasurer, secretary
and the following director positions: events;
involvement and recognition; fundraising;
communications; outreach; and professional
development.
Steven Lerer, this year’s vice president,
will serve as president for 2011-12.
“Serving on the staff assembly board is an
opportunity be an active participant in making our campus a better place to work,” said
Lerer, a resident director for Housing Services. “This is especially crucial during these
Campus Calendar
Ongoing
Exhibition: “Che! Redux” focuses on the iconic
photograph by Alberto Korda
of Che Guevara, which for
more than 50 years has
retained its iconic status as
a symbol of popular, antiestablishment uprising and
Che! Redux
revolution, and its revival
amidst political unrest in the Middle East and
North Africa. The exhibit runs through May 7.
Exhibition: “Artificial Coloring: Painting in Photography” examines the practice of painting on
photographs since the invention of the daguerreotype in 1839. In response to the advent of color
photography, artists adopted different techniques
to paint on photographs, seeking to amplify or
alter reality. The exhibit runs through May 21.
Exhibition: “Eye Contact” features an exhibition
of portraits that span the history of photography
from its invention in the 19th century to the last
quarter of the 20th century and includes Diane
Arbus, Elliott Erwitt and Anne Noggle, among
others. The exhibit runs through Aug. 6.
The UCR/CMP, the Sweeney Art Gallery and the
Culver Center of the Arts are located in the 3800
block of Main Street, Riverside. Information:
www.artsblock.ucr.edu.
April
27 Wednesday
Concert: Pricila Chavez’s Youth Orchestra, noon-1
p.m., ARTS 157 Music Rehearsal Hall. Free.
Information: www.music.ucr.edu.
tough economic times.”
Staff Assembly provides a staff perspective on important issues to campus
administrators, holds events to fund staff
scholarship and emergency assistance programs, and also organizes social events
designed to bring staff from across campus
together.
For more information, including position
descriptions, time commitments for each
position, the nominations process, and contact information for those currently holding
those position, visit staffassembly.ucr.edu/
elections.html, send an e-mail to staffassembly@ucr.edu or call Staff Assembly at (951)
827-7833.
Training: Self-Defense for Women and Men, 6-9
p.m., Recreation Center, Multipurpose Room A.
Free. Information: www.wrc.ucr.edu.
Campus Activity: UCR “Go” Walking program, 9
a.m.-5 p.m., HUB 248. Free. The event runs daily
through June 3. Information: www.well.ucr.edu.
Enrichment: Meditation and Relaxation Class by
the Counseling Center, 12:15-1 p.m., Student
Recreation Center, Room C. Free. The event runs
weekly through May 25. Information: www.well.
ucr.edu.
Campus Activity: Denim Day, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., Bell
tower. Free. Information: www.well.ucr.edu.
28 Thursday
Concert: Dianne Reeves, 8-9:30 p.m., University
Theatre Humanities 400. $50
for general admission, $48 for
staff, faculty and alumni, $25
for students. Information: www.
culturalevents.ucr.edu.
Dianne Reeves
Performance: Julie Mayo, MFA
Dance concert, 8-9:30 p.m., ARTS 166. $6.50.
The event runs daily through Apr. 30. Information:
www.dance.ucr.edu.
Ceremony: Healthy Highlander Challenge Celebration, 11 a.m.-1 p.m., HUB 355. Free. Information: www.wellness.ucr.edu.
29 Friday
Enrichment: Venomous Animals of the North
American Deserts, 5-8 p.m., UCR Palm Desert.
$229 for individuals, $209 each for couples,
$199 each with PINE discount. Information: www.
extension.ucr.edu or (951) 827-4105.
Two free workshops are being offered during the month of May by the Chancellor’s
Diversity Education Program: Making Excellence Inclusive.
Moving Toward Multicultural Competence
will be presented from 9 to 11 a.m. May 11 in
the HR Employee Development Center, 1160
University Ave.
This highly interactive introductory workshop develops the awareness, knowledge and
skills needed to promote diversity throughout
UCR and within the campus’ units and organizations. It also provides a foundation session
for more advanced or in-depth diversity train-
ing.
An Allies Safe Zone Seminar – How To Be
an Ally to LGBT People is being held from 9
a.m. to noon May 13 in HUB 268 for participants who want to be a part of the inclusive
nature of UCR’s campus.
To attend either of these, register by going
to the UC Learning Center at www.ucrlearning.
ucr.edu.
Enter your UCR NetID and password, type
“MEI” in the search field and click “Go,”
then click on the title of the class you wish to
attend. Review the activity details and select
“submit” to complete your registration.
Invasive Species Topic of Next Science Lecture Series
Most people realize only too late that
strange new bugs are killing their garden
plants, or that their favorite hiking trail is
choked out with thistles. At an estimated cost
of $3 billion per year to the state of California,
invasive species threaten water and food security, the recreational value of wilderness areas
and the value of homes.
But what are invasive species? Where do
they come from? How do they get to California?
And how do we control and manage them?
UCR bug expert Mark Hoddle will explain
invasive species and the economic and environmental problems they cause in a free public
lecture at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 28, in rooms
D-E at the University Extension Center.
Titled “What’s in Your Garden? Protecting
California From Invasive Species,” the hourlong lecture will be followed by a questionand-answer session.
Hoddle’s lecture is the second in this year’s
Science Lecture Series.
Doors open at 5:30 p.m. Seating is open.
Parking at UNEX will be free for lecture attendees.
The next lecture will be on May 5, when
Cheryl Hayashi, a professor of biology, talks
about “Designs From Nature: A New Spin on
High-Performance Materials.”
SEARCH Center Ask Faculty, Staff to Take Part in Autism Survey
In conjunction with Autism Awareness
Month, the SEARCH family autism resource
center at UCR is conducting an anonymous
and confidential 10-question survey about
autism.
The survey is the initial part of a research
study, involving the gathering of descriptive
data from the UCR campus community.
The survey can accessed at www.surveymonkey.com/s/understandingautism.
Questions can be directed to Leigh Ann
Tipton at the SEARCH Center at 951-8273489 or ltipt001@ucr.edu.
Primavera Fundraiser Offers Premier Food and Wine
If tasting fine food and wine sounds appetizing, then look no further than the Botanic
Gardens.
The 13th Annual Primavera in the Gardens
takes place from 2 to 5 p.m. May 15 in the
Botanic Gardens. Tickets to the event are $50
per person by reservation and $60 at the gate.
The annual fundraising event offers the
chance to taste appetizers from restaurants
and caterers in Riverside and sample wine
from regional vineyards and wineries, all in the
serene setting of the Botanic Gardens.
In addition to the food and wine tasting, a
silent auction will take place, featuring dozens
of garden-related items.
Proceeds from the event benefit the Botanic Gardens’ projects, which include hosting
thousands of touring school children each year.
For a list of place to buy advance tickets
visit
www.gardens.ucr.edu/events/locations.
html.
For more information, visit www.gardens.
ucr.edu or call (951) 784-6962.
Enrichment: Native American Rock Art Field
Experience, 6-9 p.m., Lake Perris Regional Indian
Museum. $145. Information: www.extension.ucr.
edu or (951) 827-5801.
Performance: New Play Festival by UCR MFA
Playwrights, 8-10 p.m., ARTS 113. $14 for
general admission, $12 for students, seniors and
children. Information: www.theatre.ucr.edu.
30 Saturday
5 Thursday
Concert: Spring Splash, 2-7 p.m., Bell tower.
Free. Information: www.well.ucr.edu.
Campus Activity: Lunchtime Learning: “When is
Free Speech Not Free,” noon-1 p.m., HUB 260.
Free. Information: www.well.ucr.edu.
May
2 Monday
Seminar: New Age Digital Viral Marketing Techniques, 6:30-9:30 p.m., UCR Extension Center.
$165. Information: www.extension.ucr.edu or
(951) 827-4105.
3 Tuesday
Campus Activity: Dive-in Movie program, 5:30-8
p.m., Physical Education Building Athletics Pool.
Free. Information: www.well.ucr.edu.
Concert: Senior Recitals Week, 8-9 p.m., ARTS
166. Free. The event runs daily through May 6.
Information: www.music.ucr.edu.
4 Wednesday
Lecture: Making the Most out of Your Medical
Visits, noon-1 p.m., HUB 269. Free. Information:
www.wellness.ucr.edu.
Colloquium: James Fenelon, “Sun Dance to Ghost
Dance: Local to Global Indigenous Movements,”
3-4:45 p.m., Tomas Rivera Library, 4th floor.
Free. Information: www.history.ucr.edu.
Campus Activity: Safe Cinco de Mayo, 4-6 p.m.,
HUB 260. Free. Information: www.well.ucr.edu.
Enrichment: Women in Leadership, 6-7:30 p.m.,
Pentland Hills Residence Hall. Free, reservations required. The event runs through May 24.
Information: adrienne.sums@ucr.edu or (951)
827-3337.
Lecture: “How Gender Inequality Persists in the
Modern World,” 2:10-3:30 p.m., Pentland Hills
Residence Hall B107/C101. Free. Information:
www.conflictresolution.ucr.edu.
6 Friday
Exhibition: UCR Market Day, 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Bell
tower and Rivera Library Mall. Free. Information:
kimberly.stotts@ucr.edu or (951) 827-5731.
Seminar: Understanding, Motivating and Managing Others, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., UCR Extension
Center. $129. Information: www.extension.ucr.
edu or (951) 827-4105.
For the most up-to-date information on
these and other events view the UCR
Calendar at www.events.ucr.edu.