Dateline Rice for Aug. 20, 2012 (Weekend Edition)

FEATURED ITEM

Rice student with cancer pushes for more pediatric therapies
Duncan College freshman James Ragan is profiled for his fight against cancer and work to promote more funding for pediatric cancer research.
Houston Chronicle (This front-page article also appeared in the Beaumont Enterprise, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and Individual.com.)
http://bit.ly/NWFdbO

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

Republican governors should want homemade exchanges
Elena Marks, scholar in health policy at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, authored this op-ed about health care exchanges.
Bloomberg.com
http://bloom.bg/PJJHny

Obama overhauls immigration enforcement
The Obama administration has gradually overhauled immigration enforcement over the last three years, with nearly two dozen administrative changes that have lightened the day-to-day burden on many immigrants who initially entered the United States illegally. Mark Jones, the Joseph D. Jamail Chair in Latin American Studies, professor and chair of political science and fellow in political science at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted. Jones also appeared on KCRW-FM to discuss the same topic.
San Francisco Chronicle (This article also appeared in the Chicago Tribune, the Houston Chronicle, the San Antonio Express-News, the Greenwich Time, the Stamford Advocate, the Baltimore Sun, the Danbury News Times and Individual.com.)
http://bit.ly/PnwZdi
KCRW-FM (Santa Monica, Calif.)
http://www.kcrw.com/news/programs/tp/tp120817deferred_deportation

Shell races the ice in Alaska
Royal Dutch Shell is spending billions of dollars to drill the first oil wells in U.S. Arctic waters in 20 years, backed by an Obama administration eager to show it wasn’t opposed to offshore exploration. Amy Myers Jaffe, the Wallace S. Wilson Fellow in Energy Studies at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted.
Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
http://on.wsj.com/NUiVEe

What should President Obama and Mitt Romney read?
Douglas Brinkley, professor of history and fellow in history at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is among several scholars recommending books for President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney.
Los Angeles Times
http://lat.ms/PjBLII

Obama aide says using petroleum reserve is an ‘option’
Articles discuss a Rice lecture by Maria van der Hoeven, executive director of the International Energy Agency.
Bloomberg.com (This article also appeared on PeakOil.com and HellenicShippingNews.com.)
http://bloom.bg/Pjqfgl
Energy leader wants transparency on hydraulic fracturing
Houston Chronicle (This article also appeared in the San Antonio Express-News and Individual.com.)
http://bit.ly/NPwLLv
IEA sees oil market as ‘sufficiently supplied’
Oil & Gas Journal
http://bit.ly/NtFYGB
IEA executive director tours South Texas Eagle Ford
Oil & Gas Journal
http://bit.ly/QJKkc5
Shale gas producers must adhere to best practices
Platt’s Energy Weekly
http://www.platts.com/RSSFeedDetailedNews/RSSFeed/NaturalGas/6572215
Shale, tight oil could lead worldwide oil, gas revolution
Exploration & Production
http://bit.ly/OQsx8d

A camera that can see around corners
An op-ed about research to develop a camera that can see around corners thanks Ashok Veeraraghavan, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, for his contribution to the research.
CNN.com
http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/19/opinion/raskar-camera-corners/index.html

Building a better deal site
Rice research is cited in an article about daily deal websites such as Groupon.
Crain’s New York Business
http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20120817/SMALLBIZ/120819914

Octopuses inspire soft-bodied robots — with the power of colorful camouflage
Inspired by the octopus, researchers around the world are working to build better robots. Rice research is mentioned.
Scientific American
http://bit.ly/NsEKQn

What if baby boomers don’t live forever?
Research by Justin Denney, assistant professor of sociology, is cited in an article about the longevity of the baby boomer generation.
China Post (This article also appeared in the Hartford Courant.)
http://www.chinapost.com.tw/health/aging/2012/08/20/351476/p2/What-if.htm

HOUSTON/TEXAS

Homeland Security films are a big hit, but costly
Over the last four years, Houston’s Office of Public Safety and Homeland Security spent $540,000 to produce three short videos dealing with public safety scenarios. David Ruth, director of national media relations, and Joan Neuhaus Schaan, a fellow in homeland security and terrorism at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, are quoted.
Houston Chronicle (This article appeared on the front of the City & State section.)
http://bit.ly/NWOQam

MD Anderson loses device with patient data
University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center officials notified 2,200 patients that a computer flash drive containing their names and health information had been lost in the institution’s second security breach in less than three months. Chris Bronk, fellow in information technology policy at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted.
Houston Chronicle (This front-page article also appeared in the San Antonio Express-News and Individual.com.)
http://bit.ly/NzX45D

Four years after Ike, there’s still no storm plan
The six-county district formed after Hurricane Ike to protect the upper Texas Gulf Coast from a massive storm surge has stalled for lack of money, but new efforts have emerged to avert a disastrous inundation. James Blackburn, professor in the practice of environmental law, is quoted.
Houston Chronicle (This article also appeared on Individual.com.)
http://bit.ly/PyWFmC

Humanimals haunt landscape of ‘Surveys’
Joseph Campana, assistant professor of English literature, authored this review of an exhibition by South African sculptor Jane Alexander.
Houston Chronicle
http://bit.ly/PyWYOg

University of Houston, Rice researchers building super-resolution microscope
University of Houston and Rice University researchers will build a new super-resolution microscope to improve the technique for chemical imaging of surfaces that could lead to advances in polymer production. Kevin Kelly, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, is mentioned.
Houston Business Journal
http://bit.ly/NMs8ln

Forbes names University of Dallas a top college
Rice placed 37th in Forbes.com’s annual ranking of America’s top 650 colleges.
Dallas Morning News
http://bit.ly/NMJqLD

James Turrell: Holograms exhibition extended
A news brief about an exhibition by artist James Turrell mentions his "Twilight Epiphany" Skyspace at Rice.
Greater Houston Weekly
http://bit.ly/N5WLnv

Royal treatment
An article about a north Texas dentistry practice mentions Rice.
Denton Record-Chronicle
http://bit.ly/SI3mkA

BROADCAST/WEBCAST

WCBS-AM (New York)
A story discusses Rice research in the longevity of the baby boomer generation.
http://bit.ly/NbNSsG

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

Future US gas export prices may not be as great as originally thought
Amid policy debate over potential liquefied natural gas exports from the United States, a new paper from Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy predicts the long-term volume of exports from the U.S. will not likely be very large. Ken Medlock, the James A. Baker III and Susan Baker Fellow in Energy and Resource Economics at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and adjunct assistant professor in economics, is quoted.
Unconventional Oil & Gas (subscription required)
http://bit.ly/P95MIg

Semiconductor nanocrystals can be patterned at nanoscale resolution
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology announced the development of a new technique that allows them to pattern semiconductor nanocrystal films at nanoscale resolution. Douglas Natelson, professor of physics and astronomy, is quoted.
Softpedia.com
http://bit.ly/SbV2wf

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

Louisiana reworking rules for new schools seeking publicly funded vouchers
The Louisiana Department of Education is taking a closer look at applications of private and parochial schools seeking first-time state certification that would qualify them to participate in the state’s new voucher program. Hanszen College sophomore Zach Kopplin is quoted.
Alexandria Town Talk (La.) (This article also appeared in the Monroe News-Star.)
http://townta.lk/PyX9Jy

Choral concert among coming PMF highlights
Joan Der Hovsepian, artist teacher of viola at the Shepherd School of Music, will perform at a Peninsula Music Festival concert.
Green Bay Press-Gazette (Wis.)
http://gbpg.net/QhHkTV

Summerville-based Giant Cement Holding names new CEO
Alumnus Jose Llontop ’93 has been named CEO of Giant Cement Holding.
Charleston Post and Courier (S.C.) (This article also appeared on MENAFN.com.)
http://bit.ly/NSVU6c
Jose Llontop named president and CEO of Giant Cement Holdings
Orangeburg Times and Democrat (S.C.)
http://bit.ly/NAOVlT

Are digital textbooks the future?
An article about digital textbook options mentions Rice’s Connexions open-education project.
Jefferson City News Tribune (Mo.)
http://www.newstribune.com/news/2012/aug/20/are-digital-textbooks-future/

UM professor’s research at heart of Pistorius debate
Rice is mentioned in an article about amputee sprinter Oscar Pistorius.
Gillette News Record (Wyo.)
http://bit.ly/NbMgiM

The invisible hand of policy
Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy is mentioned in an op-ed about how think tanks shape domestic policy.
Truth-Out.org
http://truth-out.org/speakout/item/10951-think-tank-tale

SPORTS

Lobos coach touts training in Ruidoso
An article about the New Mexico University football team mentions Ray Alborn, mayor of Ruidoso, N.M., and notes that he once served as Rice’s head football coach.
Alamogordo Daily News (N.M.)
http://bit.ly/OQsVn4

NEWS RELEASES

Brain wave-reading robot might help stroke patients
What comes naturally to most people — to think and then do — is difficult for stroke patients who have lost the full use of their limbs. New research by Rice University, the University of Houston and TIRR Memorial Hermann aims to help victims recover that ability to the fullest extent possible with a $1.17 million grant from the National Institutes of Health and the President’s National Robotics Initiative.
https://news2.rice.edu/?p=33033

Effects of domestic politics on Chinese-US relations topic at Rice’s Baker Institute Aug. 22
Qiu Huafei, a political science and international relations professor at Tongji University in Shanghai, will discuss how domestic issues in China and the United States affect the countries’ relationship at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy Aug. 22.
https://news2.rice.edu/?p=33026