Wednesday, May 14

Highlighted News Items

Dai-Wang: UM Community Aids China's Earthquake Recovery
Brinsfield: A Walk in the Md. Woods Is Both Priceless and Worth $96
Young: How to Reduce Weight in Teenage Girls
Tarnoff: Maryland Ahead of Game in Timing Its Stop Lights

UM--Higher Ed, Community
- UM Community, Dai-Wang: Chinese-Americans Raising Relief Funds for Sichuan Province Earthquake Victims
  (Baltimore Examiner)
  "The day after a deadly earthquake devastated central China, local Chinese-Americans put their grief aside and banded together to help in the relief effort. Halted by crumbled roadways, knocked-down phone lines and looming weather conditions, volunteers are struggling, said Jeannette Dai-Wang, 33, coordinator of the Institute for Global Chinese Affairs at the University of Maryland, College Park. 'Some people want to send rice and clothes, but no one knows where to send it right now,' Dai-Wang said. 'Everyone wants to get there and help, but all we have is where to wire money, so we need more information from the Chinese government.' Dai-Wang is originally from the Sichuan province, where the magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck just before 2:30 p.m. Monday. After frantically calling her family members in China, Dai-Wang reached them on a cell phone and learned they were not injured. Her family said everyone was watching the news and waiting Tuesday as the death toll neared 12,000 and tens of thousands were still missing. The University of Maryland has more than 1,000 students from China, but Dai-Wang had not yet heard yet from anyone who suffered a personal loss. She said the Chinese Student Association is planning fundraising efforts and simplifying the donation process because students are busy with final exams. The university also is offering assistance to several Chinese universities, including the University of Sichuan, which is the largest in the province."
  
  Source: Baltimore Examiner
- UM Students: District's Public Schools to Get Record Teach for America Participants
  (Washington Examiner)
  "A record number of Teach For America participants are being placed in D.C. public schools next year, as District education officials tweak staffing and hire hundreds of instructors overall. Teach For America officials are set to announce today that 170 of their teachers are bound for schools in the region, which represents a nearly 20 percent increase over last year. Of those, about 50 will be instructors in Prince George's County's school system while the remaining share are assigned to D.C. directly. ... One Teach for America participant who has been assigned to D.C. schools, Iris Ferrufino, told The Examiner working in the District was her first choice. The University of Maryland student, who grew up in Prince George's, said she wanted to stay nearby as well as to make a difference through Teach For America. 'My family has asked me, [with the reform] "Why would you want to go into a district like that?" 'she said. 'I think when there's a school district going through a process like that they need the most help. This is a great opportunity.' "
  
  Source: Washington Examiner
- Chambliss on Reading First: Program Challenged Nationally, Cheered Locally
  (Washington Examiner)
  "Young readers in Montgomery and Prince Georges counties show signs of improvement with the help of the same federal program that recently came under fire for alleged ineffectiveness. The program, called Reading First, is a piece of the 2002 No Child Left Behind legislation that aims intense reading curricula and strategies at kindergartners through third-graders at select low-performing schools. ... Reading First helps students 'learn how to pronounce the letters on the page, and how to pull sounds apart, and word fluency -- but none of those things have to do with [comprehension],' said Marilyn Chambliss, a University of Maryland reading education professor. Chambliss added, however, that the program had many positives, including the money provided to add teachers for struggling students."
  
  Source: Washington Examiner
- Wei: New Farm Buildings
  (Chronicle of Higher Education)
  Follow-up story: "New farm buildings: The University of Maryland is planning a green building for its research farm near Ellicott City. The 35,000-square-foot building, estimated to cost up to $15-million, will utilize solar and wind energy, rain-collection systems, and biological systems to treat wastewater. As a home for the university's agriculture-extension service, the building will also stand as a living laboratory and educational tool. 'This project presents an opportunity for us to facilitate the demonstration of green building,' Cheng-i Wei, dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, told The Sun. 'People will be able to see what we can do.' Meanwhile, Montana State University's agriculture college plans to construct new teaching and research facilities on its Bozeman, Mont., campus, according to The Prairie Star. The facilities, which will cost $16-million, will start going up in June, even though university officials have not raised all the money for the project. The university is also planning a $5-million research and teaching facility for the campus's Town Farm."
  
  Source: Chronicle of Higher Education (Registration required)
- Gimpel on UM Alumnus Mike Miller, Who Will Run Again for Office
  (Baltimore Sun)
  "State Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, who has been a dominant fixture in Maryland politics for four decades, strongly indicated yesterday that he plans to run for re-election in two years. ... Part of the calculus for Miller is finding a Democrat who could hold his seat. A Republican could stand a 'credible chance' in parts of Miller's district that are trending more conservative, said James Gimpel, a government professor (Behavioral & Social Sciences) at the University of Maryland, College Park. Miller himself has made strides in building the Democratic Party machinery in the district, said Chris Reynolds, chairman of the Calvert County Democratic Central Committee. That said, many don't want to see Miller go. 'It seems pretty clear to me that's the way he's leaning,' Reynolds said, adding that he believes Miller's wife also wants him to run. 'She doesn't want Mike coming home for lunch every day.' "
  
  Source: Baltimore Sun
- Beck: His Md. Teen Driving Website Offers Safety Tips for Prom Season, Beyond
  (WUSA-TV, Washington)
  "University of Maryland professor Kenneth Beck (Public Health) has studied teen drivers for more than 17 years. The Maryland State Highway Administration asked him to create a website for parents of young drivers. 'What we've found is that parents who actually set restrictions on when, where, and with whom their teen can drive with have teenagers who report less likelihood of high risk traffic behavior,' Beck says. The website (at http://parentsofyoungdrivers.com/) includes information that benefits drivers in other states too."
  
  Source: WUSA-TV (Washington) (Link to video)
- Smith: Competition Invites China Entrepreneurs to Win Cash Prizes Worth $50,000
  (Macro World Investor)
  A Smith School release picked-up by many business Web sites: "The University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business today announced the launch of the 2008 China Business Plan Competition -- Go for the Gold!, a contest delivered in partnership with the New York Mercantile Exchange. The competition, now in its fourth year, is supported by Fidelity Asia Ventures and invites China entrepreneurs to win cash prizes totaling $50,000. Entrants are invited to submit their business ideas through July 1 via the Smith School China Web site. "
  
  Source: Macro World Investor
- Ingold: U.S. Critical Foreign Languages Effort Doubling 32 States, 5 Languages
  (Press Zoom, Netherlands)
  A UM Newsdesk release is published by international Web sites: "A 32-state, national security effort to train both teens and teachers in critical foreign languages will more than double in size and scope this summer and include younger students, says the program's coordinator at the University of Maryland. The STARTALK Program -- administered by the University of Maryland National Foreign Language Center with funding from the U.S. Director of National Intelligence and the Department of Defense -- will offer 81 programs this summer in five critical languages: Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Persian and Urdu, with space for more than 2,600 students and nearly 1,100 teachers. Last summer the program debuted with 34 programs in 21 states, taught only Arabic and Chinese, involved about one-third as many participants and did not include middle school-age students. ... 'Many European and Asian nations start foreign language instruction in the fourth grade, and the truth is that the United States just doesn't have the ability to do this on a wide scale right now,' says Catherine Ingold, STARTALK administrator and director of the University of Maryland National Foreign Language Center (Arts & Humanities)."
  
  Source: Press Zoom (Netherlands)
Society and Culture
- Brinsfield: UM Study Can See the Forest from Trees and It's Worth $96
  (Associated Press)
  "A walk in the woods: priceless? Try $96. That's the value of the satisfaction one derives from a day trip to a Maryland state forest, according to a University of Maryland study released Tuesday. By putting price tags on intangibles such as recreation and the simple knowledge that the trees exist, researchers hope to help the Department of Natural Resources make better decisions about logging and other uses of forested state land. The $70,000, peer-reviewed study, funded largely by the university's Harry R. Hughes Center for Agro-Ecology (Agricultuture & Natural Resources), also examined the rate at which different forest types sequester, or trap, carbon dioxide from the air, and at what stage of its life a forest removes this greenhouse gas most efficiently. Foresters can use the data to determine when to harvest trees to maximize both timber value and carbon sequestration, Hughes Center officials said. 'These findings will benefit state land managers as they work to balance the needs of the state's growing population with the ecological and economic benefits of protected lands,' Executive Director Russell Brinsfield (research associate, Wye Research Center) said in a news release."
  
  Source: Associated Press (WTOP Radio)
- Young: How to Reduce Weight in Teenage Girls
  (Times of India)
  "After-school programs, in addition to school physical education classes, may be one answer to reducing obesity in teenage girls, says a new study. The middle school years is the time when kids begin to spend less time in physical activity, a growing concern as youth obesity rates rise. The just-released results of the Trial of Activity for Adolescent Girls (TAAG) showed that moderate to vigorous after-school physical activity, in programs that can range from hip hop dancing to surfing, can modestly increase the amount of physical activity for young teenage girls, to the point that it could prevent excess weight gain of about two pounds per year. If sustained, that extra activity could prevent a girl from becoming overweight as a teenager or adult. Deborah Young, professor and interim chair of the department of epidemiology and biostatistics in the University of Maryland, College Park, School of Public Health, was a researcher on the TAAG study."
  
  Source: Times of India
- Kirmani: Md. Home Sales Fall Furthest in Nation
  (Baltimore Sun)
  "Marc Witman, a partner with Yerman Witman Gaines & Conklin Realty in Baltimore, strongly suspects that Maryland home sales are falling so fast because prices aren't. 'There's a disconnect between what the buyers expect to see and what the sellers expect to receive,' he said. 'It's like the buyers are the only ones reading the newspapers. I think when you see the median price come down 10 or so percent, then you're going to see more buyers come off the sidelines.' Amna Kirmani, a marketing professor at the University of Maryland who specializes in consumer behavior, calls it the 'my house is different' phenomenon: 'People are anchoring on their own love for their houses instead of anchoring on what the market is doing right now. We never think it applies to us.' Maryland's continued job creation and low unemployment rate -- compared with layoffs nationally -- are probably adding to sellers' perception that their asking prices are reasonable, she said. 'They may feel they're a little more insulated than other areas,' Kirmani said."
  
  Source: Baltimore Sun
- Morici: Microsoft May Reconsider Yahoo Bid
  (Dow Jones Newswires)
  "Word that billionaire investor Carl Icahn was leaning toward launching a proxy fight to unseat at least some of Yahoo's directors could soon prompt Microsoft to answer a critical question: Has the software giant really 'moved on' from its attempt to buy Yahoo? That question was magnified overnight after a source familiar with the situation said the activist investor had acquired some 50 million Yahoo shares and was expected to decide tonight whether to launch a proxy contest -- even though he didn't have assurances from Microsoft that it would reconsider buying the struggling Internet giant. Microsoft withdrew its offer more than a week ago and has since maintained that is no longer considering a deal with Yahoo. But there is no shortage of observers, investors and analysts who believe that Microsoft would return to the table if an activist shareholder such as Mr Icahn pushed Yahoo to revive merger talks. 'Microsoft has moved on, but this changes the facts on the ground. Mr. Icahn could be a constructive catalyst in this case,' said Peter Morici, business professor at University of Maryland."
  
  Source: Dow Jones Newswires (The Australian)
- WPO: 81 Per Cent of Respondents Support Democratic Principles -- Poll
  (Jordan Times)
  Follow-up story: "Although a vast majority of Jordanians support democratic principles, many do not believe that citizens should have greater influence over the government's decision making, according to the results of a poll on Democracy and the Will of the People released on Tuesday. The survey, conducted by WorldPublicOpinion.org (Program on International Policy Attitudes, Public Policy) and supported and coordinated by the Centre for Strategic Studies at the University of Jordan, revealed that 81 per cent of respondents agreed that the will of the public should be the basis of the government's authority. In addition, 71 per cent believe that the government should be selected through elections in which all citizens can vote, according to the poll. Some 44 per cent of respondents said the will of the public should have a greater influence over the government, 27 per cent thought it should stay the same, while 17 per cent felt that the public should have less influence over government affairs. ... The poll of 17,525 respondents was conducted between January and March of this year by a collaborative research project involving research centres from across the world and managed by the Programme on International Policy Attitudes at the University of Maryland."
  
  Source: Jordan Times
- Gomery: Fall TV: Seems Like Old Times
  (Baltimore Sun)
  "Ancient rituals die hard -- and often ugly. That's what is happening this week in New York as TV networks dutifully repeat the steps they have danced for half a century as part of their annual upfront sales presentations of their new fall seasons. Only there isn't going to be much of a new fall season come September, because the smart money in network TV has already moved on -- in the direction of a 52-week programming model pioneered by Rupert Murdoch and Fox. In fact, this fall, viewers are going to see fewer new series and less change than at any time since the earliest days of network prime-time TV in the late 1940s and '50s. 'The TV season as we used to know it doesn't really exist any more, so there is no benefit in opening a ton of shows in September and then dropping most of them and keeping only a few -- it's bad business,' says Douglas Gomery (University Libraries), author of A Broadcasting History of the United States. 'While the networks are going through the motions of an upfront presentation to advertisers this week, everybody knows that the game they've played for 40 or 50 years is over. Have they announced anything new for the fall that is going to get anybody excited?' " Read more Gomery--
  
  Source: Baltimore Sun
Science and Technology
- Tarnoff: Cautionary Tale from Nation's Traffic Signals
  (McClatchy Newspapers)
  "Fine-tuning controls on the nation's traffic signals would cut U.S. road congestion by as much as 10 percent, transportation experts estimate. It would also reduce air pollution from vehicles by as much as a fifth, cut accidents at intersections and save about five tanks of gas annually per household, according to the National Transportation Operations Coalition, an alliance of federal, state and local traffic departments and equipment-makers. That's the good news. The bad news is that the average local traffic department earned an overall grade of D on the alliance's latest report card. Streamlining intersections is happening in only some cities and states, even though it's eminently doable. ... Right now, however, three out of four of the nation's 300,000 traffic signals need replacement or timing adjustments for optimum performance, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Among the obstacles are a nationwide shortage of skilled traffic engineers, unfocused local political leaders with tight budgets and stodgy local traffic departments. For that matter, federal aid that could ease congestion goes mainly to building and maintaining roads. Nonetheless, lots of cities and at least seven states -- California, Florida, Washington, Minnesota, Maryland, Georgia and Texas -- are finding ways to move traffic through intersections faster, according to the transportation engineers group. ... Technologically, most U.S. traffic signals remain very 20th century, said Philip Tarnoff, director of the Center for Advanced Transportation Technology (Clark School) at the University of Maryland, College Park. Roadside or centralized timers drive most of them by changing lights at scripted intervals, he explained. 'They tell the signals: 'It's 6 a.m. Use timing schedule A until 9 a.m. Then use timing schedule B until 4 p.m.' If timers are accurate, and the prescribed signal intervals are based on accurate and recent traffic surveys, these systems can do as well as fancier ones in typical traffic situations."
  
  Source: McClatchy Newspapers (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
- Needelman: Wetlands and Global Warming
  (Baltimore Sun)
  Tom Pelton, environment reporter for The Baltimore Sun, interviews Brian Needelman, assistant professor, environmental science and technology (Agriculture & Natural Resources) on WYPR Radio (Baltimore) about Needelman's cutting-edge studies on Chesapeake Bay wetlands. Carl Mitchell of the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center is also interviewed.
  
  Source: Baltimore Sun (Blog) (Link to video on WYSR)
- Clark School: Collaborative Group Formed to Develop Miniature Robots
  (Army Technology)
  Follow-up story: "BAE Systems says it will lead a team of scientists to develop miniature robots intended to improve military battlefield intelligence. The US$38m contract, awarded by the US Army Research Laboratory, will see the company lead a team of researchers from the army, academia and industry called the Micro Autonomous Systems and Technology (MAST) Collaborative Technology Alliance. MAST will research and develop advanced robotic equipment for use in urban environments and complex terrain, such as mountains and caves. ... MAST consists of four primary research areas: BAE Systems will lead microsystems integration, the University of Michigan will lead microelectronics, the University of Maryland (Clark School) will lead microsystem mechanics, and the University of Pennsylvania will lead processing for autonomous operation."
  
  Source: Army Technology
Alumni
- Fiorina: McCain's Economic Brain (Slate)
  "One of the most important figures in the presidential campaign this fall is a controversial, hypercompetent blonde. She has blazed new paths, is always on message, and has written a best-selling memoir. Friends and foes alike refer to her by her first name only. And she'll play a significant role shoring up the bona fides of her party's candidate among a core constituency that might be wavering. No, I'm not talking about the Democrats sending out Hillary Clinton on behalf of Barack Obama to reassure white working-class voters. Rather, I'm talking about (UM alumna) Carly Fiorina, the former chief executive officer of Hewlett-Packard, being sent out to reassure business-class voters on behalf of John McCain. Fiorina has emerged as the most prominent surrogate on economics issues in any of the major campaigns, and her alliance with McCain suggests both his strength and his weakness on the subject."
  
  Source: Slate
Higher Ed
- Weak Dollar Crimps Study Abroad
  (Wall Street Journal)
  "Over the past two years, the dollar, while up a bit from recent lows, has lost more than 20% of its value against the euro and about 6% against the pound. The result: While programs in places like Rome, Paris, Barcelona and London are still at the top of students' lists, enrollment there is slowing. And interest in alternative destinations is surging."
  
  Source: Wall Street Journal (Registration required)