uncnews.unc.edu

Here is a sampling of links and notes about Carolina people and programs cited recently in the media:

International Coverage

Atlantis mission will study bone loss
United Press International
An experiment to learn more about bone loss in astronauts exposed to weightlessness will go aloft on NASA's final shuttle flight, U.S. researchers say. Scientists at the University of North Carolina and North Carolina State University are sending 30 mice into orbit on the shuttle Atlantis as a part of research on bone and muscle health in microgravity, a UNC release said Tuesday.
UNC Release:
http://uncmedne.ws/mice-in-space

Yingluck Shinawatra: Thailand's new PM steps out of her brother's shadow
The Guardian (United Kingdom)
...At the start of the campaign, many saw Yingluck as little more than a puppet and questioned her nomination. "Actually it turned out to be a brilliant choice," says Kevin Hewison, an expert on Thailand at the University of North Carolina. "She electrified the campaign."

National Coverage

Skinny, low-calorie beverages for hot summer days
USA Today
Chances are when you reach for a cold drink this summer, it'll be a soda, sweetened tea, sugary lemonade or other high-calorie drink. One out of four high school students drink soda daily, and two thirds consume either soda or other sugary drinks such as Gatorade, a recent government survey found. Children and teens consume about 390 calories a day from beverages, says Barry Popkin, a nutrition professor at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and one of the nation's top experts on beverage consumption.

Consumer Confidential: Vacations in peril, Verizon data caps, obesity crisis solved (Blog)
The Los Angeles Times
...From the Sounds About Right file: A new study by researchers at the University of North Carolina finds that a key reason for the obesity epidemic may be that we're eating a lot more. "First, the food industry started 'super sizing' our portions, then snacking occasions increased and we were convinced we needed to drink constantly to be hydrated," said Barry Popkin, the study's senior author. Despite the "duh" factor here, the study is apparently the first to examine the combined contribution of changes in three key factors: portion sizes, food energy density and eating frequency.
UNC Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/4611/71/

Regional Coverage

Table Talk: How snacking, diet sodas and hidden calories may be contributing to our waistlines
The Oregonian (Portland)
At the digital kitchen table, there's plenty of health news to discuss. First, a report that snacking, not portion size, is the main culprit in American over-eating. ...Snacking is real root of America's weight problem: The United States is facing an obesity epidemic, and the solution to Americans' weight gain isn't about portion control, but cutting down on unhealthy snacks, according to a new study by the University of North Carolina.
UNC Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/4611/71/

Laser throws light on addiction
The Suncoast News (Tampa, Fla.)
Using an emerging technique in which light stimulates or inhibits nerve cells that have been altered at the genetic level, researchers at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hills have been able to alter the reward-seeking behavior in lab mice. ...Garret D. Stuber, assistant professor in the departments of cell and molecular physiology, psychiatry and the Neuroscience Center in UNC School of Medicine, and his collaborators have been using the technique known as optogenetics to study how the transfer of nerve impulse between regions of the brain can affect behavior such as reward seeking.

State and Local Coverage

UNC report: Cherokee casino raises incomes
The Citizen-Times (Asheville)
Harrah's Cherokee Casino boosted income in Western North Carolina 10 percent in the past decade, according to a new report from the University of North Carolina. The casino and hotel business is worth $380 million to the economy. It accounts for 8 percent of all wages and 5 percent of all jobs in the two-county area surrounding the Cherokee Indian Reservation.
UNC Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/4607/107/

Study Shows Portion Sizes and Eating Occasions are Climbing
WCHL 1360-AM (Chapel Hill)
Hopefully you watched what you put on the grill during the holiday weekend because UNC released a study last week confirming that adults are eating more and they’re eating more often. The 30-year project was led by nutrition professor Dr. Barry Popkin and focused on how super-sized portions and snacks have negatively affected dieting patterns across the country. The study is the first to look at how portion sizes, food energy density and frequency of eating all work together to affect overall caloric intake.
UNC Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/4611/71/

Strokes and snack foods (Editorial)
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
The depressing news isn't that fried potatoes will make people fat. (And since when is that news, anyway?) The depressing news is that they may be making us stupider. Last week, just in time for Fourth of July barbecue planning, the New England Journal of Medicine published a study that was conducted in part by nutrition researchers at UNC Capel Hill.

UNC School of Library Science Partners with Town of Chapel Hill
WCHL 1360-AM (Chapel Hill)
The Town of Chapel Hill received a grant from UNC’s School of Information and Library Science to increase the digital workforce. The grant was worth almost $900,000 and was awarded to UNC’s Dr. Helen Tibbo from the Institute of Museum and Library Services to help integrate public policy with technology. It will provide funding for graduate level students to intern with the Communications and Public Affairs Department. The other UNC based internship sites are University Archives and Record Management Services and the Environmental Finance Center.

Blue Devils, Tar Heels finish in top 10 of Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup
The Triangle Business Journal
Neither may have won the national championship in men’s basketball this year, but Duke University and UNC-Chapel Hill were again well represented in postseason college athletics. Duke and UNC finished fifth and sixth, respectively, in the Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup, which tallies how schools perform in up to 20 sports, including 10 men’s sports and 10 women’s sports.
UNC Release:
http://tarheelblue.cstv.com/genrel/070111aac.html

From Homeless to UNC Student
WGHP-TV (Fox/Charlotte)
After being homeless for nearly two years, Brooklyn Young is heading to UNC-Chapel Hill this fall to work on her Bachelor's degree. Young lost her mother to cancer five years ago, and she struggled so much to cope that she dropped out of college in Ohio. She also struggled to keep a permanent home.

MedAir to leave airport this month
The Chapel Hill News
Traffic at Horace Williams Airport should drop by almost half later this month when UNC's medical fleet leaves for Raleigh-Durham International Airport. MedAir is scheduled to move to a new hangar at RDU in late July, university spokesman Mike McFarland said. Horace Williams Airport will remain open after that date for general aviation operations.

Airport issue silently dies (Editorial)
The Chapel Hill Herald
A onetime deeply contentious issue that blew the roof off of Orange County has ended without so much as a whimper. Creation of an airport authority to explore where to build a new airstrip once Carolina North construction begins and an aging Horace Williams Airport closes is not going to happen.

Elegy for an airport (Column)
The Chapel Hill News
(With apologies to William Shakespeare) Friends of the State of North Carolina, lend me your ears; I write to bury Horace Williams Airport, not to praise it. (James P. Loehr, M.D., is in the Division of Pediatric Cardiology at UNC, whose final scheduled flight from Horace Williams airport occurred June 21, 2011.)

Load up on fresh produce (Column)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
You know what nutritionists say. You know what federal dietary guidelines advise: Load up your meals with fruits and vegetables. The fresher, the better. If you're ever going to do it, now is your chance. That's because summer is when conditions are best for shifting your eating pattern to take advantage of in-season produce. (Suzanne Havala Hobbs is a registered dietitian and a clinical associate professor in the department of health policy and administration in the Gillings School of Global Public Health at UNC-Chapel Hill.)

NCAA Investigation

McAdoo sues UNC, NCAA for reinstatement
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Former North Carolina football player Michael McAdoo, who was declared permanently ineligible last year for academic misconduct, has filed a lawsuit against the university and the NCAA seeking to restore his athletic eligibility to allow him to play for the Tar Heels this fall.
Related Link:
http://www.wralsportsfan.com/voices/blogpost/9822729/

Player Sues UNC
WUNC-FM (Chapel Hill)
...A year ago, Michael McAdoo was a promising defensive end for the Tar Heels football team. But like 13 other teammates, he was swept up in a scandal involving benefits from an agent and academic misconduct. Seven players, including McAdoo, were suspended for the season. Earlier today, McAdoo’s attorneys filed a suit in Durham County Superior Court against UNC-Chapel Hill, saying he was improperly and unjustly suspended.