Dateline Rice for Dec. 21, 2015 (Weekend Edition)

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

Inflammation ‘fans the flames’ of depression
Chronic inflammation in the bloodstream can “fan the flames” of depression, much like throwing gasoline on a fire, according to a new paper from researchers at Rice University and Ohio State University. Christopher Fagundes, assistant professor of psychology, is quoted.
Futurity (This is featured on the home page.)
http://bit.ly/1UXvcv6
Inflammation fuels depression flames
India.com (This article also appeared in WebIndia123, Yahoo! India, FreshGhana.com, AniNews.in, Sify, NewKerala.com, Argentina Star, Nigeria Sun, Siasat Daily, Dublin News and Free Press Journal.)
http://bit.ly/1meL2p0
Chronic inflammation can also cause depression
The Health Site
http://bit.ly/1QTFmfQ
Depression worsens with inflammation, study reveals
Latinos Health
http://bit.ly/1PjtDao
Inflammation can fan the flames of depression
Science 2.0 (This article also appeared in Science Codex, Health, Medical and Science updates, Medical News Today, Science 20, IrishSun.com and Science Newsline.)
http://bit.ly/1Tc5iT2

Face implants fight infection from gunshots
Rice researchers test antibiotic-infused block copolymers in their plastic spacers to protect craniofacial tissue from infection while healing. Antonios Mikos, the Louis Calder Professor of Bioengineering and Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, is quoted. Alumnus Paschalia Mountziaris ’10 is mentioned.
Futurity
http://bit.ly/1OiHajt
Antibiotic-infused implants designed to help faces heal
HealthCanal.com (This article also appeared in Science Daily and 17 other media outlets.)
http://bit.ly/22kbYoj

Sen. Ted Cruz’s calibrated Christmas tour
Mark Jones, the Joseph D. Jamail Chair in Latin American Studies, professor of political science and fellow in political science at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, comments on U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady and House Speaker Joe Straus’ campaigns, Sen. Ted Cruz’s presidential tour, Adrian Garcia’s decision to run for Congress and newly elected Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner.
Miami Herald (This article also appeared in McClatchy Newspapers and 32 other media outlets.)
http://hrld.us/1Zlbz2v
As Rep. Brady rises on Capitol Hill, he faces primary challenge at home
Houston Chronicle (This appeared on the front page. Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/1IjMDEs
House Speaker Straus faces challengers for district seat
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/1m3Uc8t
Straus faces 2-candidate challenge from the far right in Republican primary
San Antonio Express-News
http://bit.ly/1NGRzji
Cruz sweeps the south in 12 days
The Columbus Dispatch (A similar article appeared in HexaNews.com.)
http://bit.ly/1QEWCXs
Adrian Garcia versus Donald Trump?
Houston Press
http://bit.ly/1k6Mx7h
Looking back and looking ahead for Mayor-elect Turner
Off the Kuff
http://bit.ly/1TZWX51

Is Washington and Lee a better value than Princeton or Harvard? Kiplinger’s says so.
Rice is No. 7 on Kiplinger’s list of 10 best-value schools for 2016. The ranking combines public and private universities. Rice is No. 4 on the best-value list of private universities.
Washington Post
http://wapo.st/1T6JmZn

A top Texas private university opts out of ‘campus carry’ gun law
Southern Methodist University in Dallas opted out of the Texas “campus carry” law. Rice is mentioned for also opting out of the law.
Reuters (This article appeared in more than 20 other media outlets.)
http://reut.rs/1TZU7x1
Top Christian college rejects Texas law allowing guns on campus
Huffington Post
http://huff.to/1ZgKL3v
SMU opts out of campus carry
Texas Tribune
http://bit.ly/1mePLqE
SMU blocks ‘campus carry,’ to remain weapon-free
KXAN.com
http://bit.ly/22k8vGl
http://bit.ly/1OGh983

Luxury brands are targeting Chinese students in the United States
Western luxury brands are seeking to capitalize on Chinese consumers’ new wealth through tourists and parents of students studying in the United States, such as at Rice.
Business Insider (This article also appeared in Business Insider UK and more than 35 other media outlets.)
http://read.bi/1kcrn7O
Luxury brands tap rich Chinese students in US
Khaleej Times
http://bit.ly/1m0LTKp

Trump-Cruz gap getting wider
Sen. Ted Cruz’s mother, alumna Eleanor Darragh ’56, is mentioned.
The Detroit News (This article also appeared in Yahoo! News and 11 other media outlets.)
http://detne.ws/1S4owvx

HOUSTON/TEXAS

Time for a reality check on health insurance
Elena Marks, a nonresident health policy fellow at the Baker Institute for Public Policy and president and CEO of the Episcopal Health Foundation, authored an op-ed about the cost of health care.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/1S4Q2ZM

Connecting the humanities, medicine and STEM
At a time when the number of humanities majors nationwide is declining, a Dec. 8 panel at Rice highlighted the growing opportunities for critical engagement among the humanities, medicine and the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. The panel was hosted by Nicolas Shumway, dean of humanities and the Frances Moody Newman Professor of Humanities and professor of Spanish and Portuguese; was moderated by Kirsten Ostherr, professor of English; and featured a presentation by Marcia Brennan, professor of religion and art history and faculty fellow in the Center for Teaching Excellence.
Texas Medical Center News (This is featured in TMC Today.)
http://bit.ly/1J1UrdY
http://bit.ly/1NHfMGm

Are we headed to World War III?
Richard Stoll, the Albert Thomas Chair in Political Science and scholar at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, discusses the United States’ relationship with Russia in the fight against the Islamic State.
KTRH-AM
http://bit.ly/1meOoZb
http://bit.ly/1Yru4Ft

Mayor-elect delivers good news to Hispanic Advisory Board at party
David Medina ’83, director of multicultural community relations, presented a Rice Santa cap to Houston Mayor Annise Parker at a Hispanic Advisory Board gathering.
CultureMap Houston
http://bit.ly/1NyjrbA

Here’s how Houston’s quality of life issues rank nationally
Houston is No. 11 on LawnStarter’s 2015 Quality of Life Index for America’s largest cities. Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research is cited for its 2015 survey findings, which noted traffic as the main concern for Houston residents.
Houston Business Journal
http://bit.ly/1OhGmoL

Houston Symphony sets performances for January
Colombian violinist and conductor Andrés Orozco-Estrada and the Houston Symphony will perform his English commentary series “Musically Speaking with Andrés” at Rice’s Stude Concert Hall Jan. 28.
Here Entertainment
http://bit.ly/1QF37cK

BROADCAST

Bloomberg Radio
Bob Stein, the Lena Gohlman Fox Professor of Political Science, is quoted about the Democratic National Committee’s preference for not having an audience at debates.
http://bit.ly/1m40KDV (Click on the audio button to listen to the broadcast. This also aired on WTOP-DC, KUIK-FM and WBZ-AM.)

After No Child Left Behind, what’s next for Texas schools?
Linda McSpadden McNeil, director of Rice’s Center for Education and professor of education, is interviewed about the impact the Every Student Succeeds Act will have on Texas.
Houston Public Media
http://bit.ly/1Ikeq7L

99.1 FM Talk (Reno, Nev.)
Rice scientists build light-powered nanoscale submarines with just 244 atoms. James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Professor of Chemistry, professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering, and graduate student Victor García-López are quoted.
http://bit.ly/1UWuxde (Click on the audio button to listen to the broadcast.)

KFOR-TV (Oklahoma City)
Alumna Julie Graves ’79 competed on “Jeopardy” and explained Rice’s Beer Bike Race.
http://bit.ly/1kcyvRK (Click on the audio button to listen to the broadcast. This also aired on WFTV-TV.)

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

Paper: US and Mexico must work to prevent future outbreaks of mosquito-transmitted diseases
Despite the increasing risks of mosquito-transmitted epidemics in the United States and Mexico, policymakers in both countries have made little effort to prevent future outbreaks, according to a new policy brief by tropical-disease and science policy experts at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. Kirstin Matthews, an adjunct lecturer of sociology and a fellow in science and technology policy at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, and Jennifer Herricks, postdoctoral fellow in disease and poverty at the Baker Institute, are quoted.
HealthCanal.com
http://bit.ly/1Zl6Mhw
US and Mexico increase efforts against mosquito-borne illnesses
Vaccine News Daily
http://bit.ly/1Mr8N2k

New report shows gains in health insurance across Texas fall behind rest of US
The rate of adults without health insurance across the U.S. dropped nearly twice as much as in Texas from 2013 to 2015, according to a new report released by Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and the Episcopal Health Foundation. Elena Marks, a nonresident health policy fellow at the Baker Institute for Public Policy and president and CEO of the Episcopal Health Foundation, is quoted.
HealthCanal.com (This article also appeared in Medical Xpress, Valley Star, My High Plains and Gilmer Mirror.)
http://bit.ly/1TZwogk
Federal health-insurance exchanges see nearly 6 million apply for 2016 coverage
Sacred Heart Spectrum (This article also appeared in Healthcare Business News, Valley Morning Star and DotMed.)
http://bit.ly/1TZyKvy

Treaty doesn’t cloud future for Texas oil and gas
Kenneth Medlock, senior director of the Center for Energy Studies and the James A. Baker III and Susan Baker Fellow in Energy and Resource Economics at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and lecturer of economics, is quoted about the positive impact Paris’ climate treaty will have on Texas’ coal plants and the bill to lift the 40-year-old ban on U.S. oil exports.
Jacksonville Progress
http://bit.ly/1OFXdlM
COP21 a landmark agreement, but …
KallanishEnergy.com
http://bit.ly/1PjwNer
US poised to export oil for 1st time in 40 years
North Star National (This article also appeared in Investment Underground, TJCNewspaper and Bills Insider.)
http://bit.ly/1UW5Nlw

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

Use of death penalty continues its decline in the United States
According to the Death Penalty Information Center, capital punishment has sharply declined in the United States. Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research is cited for its survey of Harris County’s preference for life without parole as opposed to the death penalty as punishment for first-degree murder.
Seating Chair
http://bit.ly/1RA7gPu

Secular Social Justice conference only 6 weeks away
The 2016 Secular Social Justice conference will be held Jan. 30-31 at Rice. Patheos.com
http://bit.ly/1mw1y4h

Race for president: 2015 has been the ‘Year of Fear’ in US politics
Rice is cited for its study on the effect of stimuli on conservatives and liberals.
Contra Costa Times (This also appeared in Santa Cruz Sentinel and 12 other media outlets.)
http://bayareane.ws/1OixF3R

SPORTS

Area men’s basketball: Rice edges New Mexico
Rice men’s basketball beat University of New Mexico 90-89 at the Pit.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/1UWgiVQ
Rice stuns New Mexico in basketball
KRQE News 13
http://bit.ly/1RADTg3

Women’s basketball: No. 4 Baylor tops No. 23 Miami
Rice women’s basketball fell to Stephen F. Austin University 45-59 at William R. Johnson Coliseum.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/1QFhq1d

The Jays’ Joe Sheehan is living life by the numbers
Athletics Director Joe Karlgaard is quoted in an article about Joe Sheehan, the Toronto Blue Jays’ director of analytics.
TheStar.com
http://on.thestar.com/1S2DJxh

NEWS RELEASES

Aryeh Warmflash wins NSF CAREER Award
Rice bioscientist Aryeh Warmflash has won a National Science Foundation CAREER Award to advance his study of human embryonic development.
http://bit.ly/1NH7AWx

Baker Institute’s Medlock available to discuss impact of crude-oil exports
This week, President Barack Obama is expected to sign a bill to lift the 40-year-old ban on U.S. oil exports, changing the dynamic of U.S. producers in the world energy market. Kenneth Medlock, senior director of the Center for Energy Studies at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is available to discuss the local and global impacts of this development with media.
http://bit.ly/1QUrGRy