Dateline Rice for July 21, 2014 (Weekend Edition)

FEATURED ITEMS

Rice AD keeping eye on facilities upgrades
Rice Athletics Director Joe Karlgaard is featured for his new vision for Rice athletics, which includes a renovation of Rice Stadium. Men’s basketball coach Mike Rhoades and football coach David Bailiff, swimming coach Seth Huston, women’s tennis coach Elizabeth Schmidt and baseball coach Wayne Graham are mentioned.
Houston Chronicle (This article appeared on the front of the Sports section. Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/1pve0gb

Rice scientist part of study to map Mount St. Helens’ depths
Scientists will set off a series of underground explosions across southwest Washington to map the plumbing system beneath Mount St. Helens. Alan Levander, the Carey Croneis Professor of Earth Science, is quoted and is the lead scientist for the experiment.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required. This appeared in the front page of the City/State section.)
http://bit.ly/Un0Xn1
Washington’s volcanoes get more scientific scrutiny
Houston Chronicle (This article also appeared in the Seattle Times and 22 other media outlets.)
http://bit.ly/WruP39
Scientists to conduct explosive experiment at Mount St. Helens
Inquisitr
http://bit.ly/1u7QaxC
Science highlight: Mount Rainier’s magma chamber mapped
Delhi Daily News
http://bit.ly/1lm63ap

CNN
Richard Stoll, the Albert Thomas Chair in Political Science and scholar at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, discusses the Israel-Gaza conflict.
http://tinyurl.com/kf9qb6j

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

45 years ago, humans took one small step on the moon
John F. Kennedy’s speech given at Rice in 1962 is referenced.
Forbes
http://onforb.es/1qUhM3I
45th anniversary of the moon landing
C-SPAN
http://cs.pn/1qkGVIN
45 years ago: Footprints 1st found on moon
The Register (This article also appeared in Austin American-Statesman, Worcester Telegram & Gazette, Guardian Liberty Voice, KOMO News and Times Record.)
http://bit.ly/UmHbrN
To the moon: How we built the technologies
ZDNet.com
http://zd.net/1kLWP7g

A rundown of the 2014 lieutenant governor races
Mark Jones, the Joseph D. Jamail Chair in Latin American Studies, professor and chair of political science and fellow in political science at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted about the lieutenant governor race and Attorney General Greg Abbott’s campaign ads. Jones is also referenced for his legislative rankings of Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst’s recent appointments to the Legislative Budget Board.
Governing
http://bit.ly/1n4B2My
2014: A costly election year
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
http://bit.ly/1sEUpiD
Texas lieutenant governor’s race rated most interesting in the country
Burnt Orange Report
http://bit.ly/1nuvfBa
Talking points: The week’s best quotes
Dallas Morning News
http://bit.ly/1qwynP6
Quotes of the week
Texas Tribune
http://bit.ly/1p6JN8f
LBB swings right in Senate, left in House
Agenda Wise
http://bit.ly/1zXfJBN

Miami could be the American Atlantis
Texas is one of the most significant contributors to global warming, due to its excessive greenhouse emissions. John Anderson, the W. Maurice Ewing Chair in Oceanography, professor of Earth science and academic director of Rice’s Shell Center for Sustainability, is quoted.
New Zealand Herald
http://bit.ly/WkExEo

How I teach — See the light in science
Summerville Primary School students performed their raps about the sun live via Skype for David Alexander, director of the Rice Space Institute and a Rice professor of astronomy.
Tes Connect
http://bit.ly/1yQL87H

The gale force of Garry Winogrand
Street photographer Garry Winogrand’s exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art includes a video of him answering questions from Rice students.
The Boston Globe
http://bit.ly/1yQwhdb

Randall Stout, Los Angeles architect known for being environmentally aware, dies at 56
Alumnus Randall Stout ’89 died after battling renal cancer.
The Washington Post (This article also appeared in EIN News, Bellingham Herald, McClatchy Company Washington, D.C., Bureau and Los Angeles Times.)
http://wapo.st/1p1WPkC

Detroit’s Pewabic Pottery: A treasure trove of tiles, pottery and history
Pewabic Pottery in Detroit is featured. Pewabic Architecture can be found on the Rice campus.
Examiner.com
http://exm.nr/1lmA0Hb

10 surprising ways marriage makes you healthier
A Rice study about the differences in death rates among married and divorced men is referenced.
Modern Ghana
http://bit.ly/1kMm4Gt

HOUSTON/TEXAS

Harris Health considers charity care policy change
Harris County will continue to subsidize treatment for patients eligible for private insurance since only 27 patients signed up for insurance under the Affordable Care Act. Elena Marks, scholar in health policy at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is referenced for her report about uninsured Texans.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/1rfjPBi

Houston couple got engaged in the Alaskan wilderness
Shelley Harvey, associate professor of mathematics, and Tim Cochran, professor of mathematics, were awarded prestigious fellowships from the Simons Foundation. The mention can be found near the end of the article under “Milestones.”
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/1kMdt6I

Efforts to boost air quality getting little traction in DFW
The Dallas County Medical Society asked Texas environmental regulators to increase pollution controls, which are among the worse in the nation. Daniel Cohan, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, is quoted.
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
http://bit.ly/1pvxwZI

Cell membrane proteins give up their secrets
Rice scientists have successfully analyzed transmembrane protein folding. Peter Wolynes, the D.R. Bullard-Welch Foundation Professor of Science and a professor of chemistry, is quoted.
The Rancher (This article also appeared in Fort Bend Sun and Medical News Today.)
http://bit.ly/1nahZ32

Mesquite teacher studies with distinguished scholars
Allen Matusow, the William Gaines Twyman Professor of History and associate director of Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, attended “America in the 1960’s,” a professional development institute sponsored by Humanities Texas and the University of Houston.
Mesquite News
http://bit.ly/1wR1pGH

35 amazing facts about the Lone Star State
The Heisman Trophy that was named after former Rice football coach John Heisman is included as an amazing fact about Texas.
REDNews
http://bit.ly/1n5mLPP

SA Catholic Schools gets new superintendent
Alumna Marti West ’88 has been named Superintendent of Catholic Schools in San Antonio.
Fox 29 (San Antonio)
http://bit.ly/1yQGZ3w

Blow: Dallas police officers fight crime, but don’t get paid
The Dallas Police Department recently added six members to its all-volunteer police unit. Alumnus Faroukh Mehkri ’12 is quoted.
Dallas Morning News
http://bit.ly/UmOmjw

Church’s awards scholarships
New Braunfels High School salutatorian Mia Hofstad plans to attend Rice.
Herald Zeitung
http://bit.ly/1rDVhBc

BROADCAST

KTRK-TV
Joe Barnes, the Bonner Means Baker Fellow at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, comments on the downing of the Malaysian Airlines Flight 17.
http://tinyurl.com/peear97
KTRH-AM
http://bit.ly/WrIlUD

KTRK-TV
Andrew Bowen, the Baker Institute scholar for the Middle East and director of Rice’s Baker Institute’s Levant Program, discusses the Israel-Gaza conflict.
http://tinyurl.com/lmutawq

KPRC-TV
Vaughn Walwyn ’04, pastor of CT Legacy Church, was interviewed about his church’s community outreach.
http://tinyurl.com/kegusvv

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

Bee-inspired bots skitter and swarm at NYC’s Museum of Mathematics
James McLurkin, assistant professor of computer science, is featured for his insect-like robots exhibition called “Robot Swarm,” which will debut at Manhattan’s Museum of Mathematics in 2015.
Gizmodo (This article also appeared in Gizmodo Australia.)
http://bit.ly/1n52DgL

Carbyne morphs when stretched: Rice University calculations show carbon-atom chain would go metal to semiconductor
Boris Yakobson, the Karl F. Hasselmann Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science and professor of chemistry, and his team found that stretching carbyne by 3 percent can change its properties, which may be useful for mechanically activated electronics and optics. Yakobson and postdoctoral researcher Vasilii Artyukhov are quoted. Graduate student Mingjie Liu is mentioned.
Nanotechnology Now (This article also appeared in Phys.org.)
http://bit.ly/WredZk

Taking great ideas from the lab to the fab
The National Science Foundation announced the first InTrans award of $3 million to a team of researchers who are designing customizable computing technologies for health care use. The research team includes experts in electrical engineering and medicine from Rice.
RedOrbit
http://bit.ly/1qwKkUX

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee hearing
Neal Lane, the Malcolm Gillis University Professor, senior fellow in science and technology policy at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and a professor of physics and astronomy, testified before the full Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.
InsuranceNewsNet.com
http://bit.ly/1yQIRcr

US drug policy and the border child immigration crisis [feature]
Nathan Jones, the Alfred C. Glassell III Postdoctoral Fellow in Drug Policy at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted about the ongoing drug war and border crisis.
StoptheDrugWar.org (This article also appeared in the Weed Blog.)
http://bit.ly/1p7xYig

HealthCare.gov IT contract: Any takers?
Healthcare.gov is searching for a new technology vendor. Vivian Ho, the James A. Baker III Institute Chair in Health Economics at the Baker Institute for Public Policy and professor of economics, is quoted.
Crain’s Detroit Business
http://bit.ly/1nNVcWA

Older people may be more likely to have their memory impaired by environmental distractions
Older adults are nearly twice as likely as younger people to have their memory and cognitive processes impaired by environmental distractions, according to a study funded by Rice’s Social Sciences Research Institute and the Gertrude Maurin Fund.
University Herald
http://bit.ly/1nNx2vt

Broadway’s Wesley Taylor to teach master classes in Houston and Dallas this month
Broadway star Wesley Taylor will teach a master class for performers interested in musical theater at Rice.
Broadway World
http://bit.ly/1naYtDy

New Jersey Symphony Orchestra premieres winning composers’ works
Alumnus Lembit Beecher ’05 will perform at Princeton University.
NJ.com
http://bit.ly/1kMcxPF

Levy County nurse named state’s 2014 School Nurse of the Year
Former P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School student Craig Joiner plans to pursue a degree in genetic science at Rice.
Gainesville.com
http://bit.ly/1kLTfKt

SPORTS

2 trades that could take the Cincinnati Reds to the next level
Former Rice student-athlete Tony Cingrani is featured.
Bleacher Report
http://ble.ac/1nurTxX

NEWS RELEASES

Carbyne morphs when stretched
Applying just the right amount of tension to a chain of carbon atoms can turn it from a metallic conductor to an insulator, according to Rice University scientists. Stretching the material known as carbyne — a hard-to-make, one-dimensional chain of carbon atoms — by just 3 percent can begin to change its properties in ways that engineers might find useful for mechanically activated nanoscale electronics and optics.
http://bit.ly/Un1ipL

End the war on drugs, Baker Institute expert says
As states around the nation consider the legalization of marijuana and the federal government is reforming drug-sentencing guidelines, the time to end the war on drugs has come, according to Dean Becker, a nonresident research associate and member of the Drug Policy Program at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.
http://bit.ly/1rjLz7V