UCSD Near You Topics - 2006

For Tim Roemer -- the former six-term Democratic congressman from Indiana -- the two years he spent on the 9/11 Commission represented "the most important assignment I will ever receive in my lifetime. I knew from beginning to end that it was my job to try and make sure more people don't lose their husbands or wives or sons or daughters in the years to come. And I can tell you - that kind of responsibility just eats you alive."
Honorable Timothy J. Roemer, ’79
President, Center for National Policy

America will be forever changed because of the horrific terrorist events on September 11, 2001.

To ensure U.S. citizens might once again feel safe and secure, the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States -- better known as the 9/11 Commission -- was set up in late 2002 "to prepare a full and complete account of the circumstances" surrounding the September 11 attacks.

For two long and emotional years, ten high-profile Americans on the commission would attempt to understand why the 9/11 attacks had not been prevented and how to stop such attacks in the future. As the public hearings got under way in the spring of 2003, political observers on both Capitol Hill and Pennsylvania Avenue realized they were about to witness an unprecedented event in American history: a public discussion of some of the nation's most guarded secrets. They were also about to watch a fierce struggle between the White House and the investigators over access to information about intelligence and military failures -- information so explosive it might very well have helped decide the presidential election.

" Denying global warming is the scientific equivalent of denying that the earth is round."
Richard Somerville, Ph.D.
Scripps Distinguished Professor of Meteorology

Hurricanes became an all too frequent news story in 2005. Why? Because global warming is here, and the warmer the water, the greater chance for a hurricane. The tragic devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina demonstrated that changes in the Earth's climate are a concern to us all.

The late Charles David Keeling, climate pioneer at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, was the first to show that atmospheric CO2 was, and is, steadily rising. That was the beginning, and the science of climate change -- at Scripps and around the world -- has never been the same. We're facing a warming planet, and the impact of global warming on the Earth's climate is a concern to all. Fortunately, Scripps and UCSD have one of the most comprehensive groups of scientists working on the problem from all possible angles, exploring solutions as they search for a sustainable balance between Earth's natural environment and human activity... now, and for generations to come.

Calit2 - A UC Experiment for Living in the Future

“ During the next 20 years, we’re going to see what I call ‘the perfect storm’–an interaction between biology, including how to deal with individual molecules and their coding and communication systems, with IT and telecom, such as wireless and optics. Then, that will all interact with the nanotechnology world.  As a result, we’re going to have a vastly higher premium put on interdisciplinary teams than we’ve seen before.”
Larry Smarr, Ph.D.
Director, Calit2 

The California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (Calit2), a partnership of UC San Diego and UC Irvine, is an experiment in inventing the university research environment of the future to continue to fuel innovation in the global economy.  With its emphasis on discovery and innovation at the intersection of science, engineering and the arts, Calit2 constitutes one of the largest multidisciplinary research centers in the nation.

The new UCSD Calit2 building will house nearly 900 researchers and staff, focused in the context of telecommunications and information technology as related to the evolving Internet.  Calit2’s exciting charge is to conduct critical research to understand how the Web will affect our personal lives, laws and economic leadership. The understanding that arises from this research will help us manage the massive change that lies ahead.

Stem Cell Research:an Open Conversation

“There isn’t a social consensus that we shouldn’t do embryonic stem-cell research.  If anything, there’s a majority opinion that supports it.”

Larry Goldstein, Ph.D.
UCSD Professor of Cellular and Molecular Medicine

Californians passed the controversial Proposition 71 stem cell research initiative by almost 60 percent of the vote. UC San Diego scientist Larry Goldstein was responsible for some of the language and much of the advocacy for the proposition, which authorizes $3 billion worth of tax-free state bonds to fund human stem-cell research over the next 10 years. Thanks to Prop-71, the world’s best minds in stem cell research are thinking about California.  In fact, UCSD faculty members are already writing joint proposals with investigators at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, The Scripps Research Institute and The Burnham Institute. There is talk of consortiums in San Diego, and of funding a joint facility with Prop-71 money.

Although the measure bars the use of Prop-71 funding for human reproductive cloning research, the controversy still remains –some people are morally opposed to the use of stem cells in medical research, which often come from embryos that are discarded after in-vitro fertilization. Yet in the short term, embryonic stem-cell research programs could improve traditional therapies such as formulating small-molecule drugs or pills. And by growing human stem cells in a petri dish, we might be able to create models that will allow us to test hypotheses with conventional drug approaches to treating Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other devastating genetic diseases.

Childhood Autism: Fact, Fiction and Why It Is So Important to Know the Difference

"Many families try one thing after another, losing precious months before hitting on the therapeutic method best suited for their autistic child. Given the importance of early intervention, we need to get it right the first time."
Laura Schreibman, Ph.D.
Author, UCSD Psychology Professor, Director of the UCSD Autism Research Program

Autism therapy is bedeviled by unpredictable outcomes. Even with the best behavioral treatments –which are the only ones to have been scientifically demonstrated to work –some children improve dramatically, some only somewhat and others not at all.  Unfortunately, extraordinary and unfounded claims have falsely raised hopes, stirred fears and ruined lives.  One of the tragedies of autism, according to expert Laura Schreibman, is that “the field is littered with the debris of dead ends, crushed hopes, ineffective treatments, and false starts.”

With more than 30 years of clinical experience, Schreibman brings a valuable historical perspective to her discussion of the controversies surrounding the diagnosis of autism, its causes and its treatments. Arguing that autism is entirely biological in origin, Schreibman systematically discounts past and present popular causal theories. The disturbing, and often tragic, impact of simplistic and unsubstantiated treatments, like facilitated communication, secretin and holding therapy, serve as evidence that “bad science can lead to as much mischief as no science.”

UCSD Alumni Association Overview
The UCSD Alumni Association was formed in 1964 by a small group of early graduates, and has grown today to represent over 100,000 alumni. Our mission is to foster a lifelong, mutually beneficial relationship of alumni and students with UCSD. The Association works to provide alumni with continued access to the resources of the University, communicate UCSD news and happenings, and facilitate a network for alumni and student interaction. MORE

The Campaign for UCSD: Imagine What's Next
Since its founding nearly 50 years ago, the University of California, San Diego has rapidly achieved the status as one of the top institutions in the nation for higher education and research. In order to keep UCSD at the forefront of academic and research excellence, the university launched The Campaign for UCSD: Imagine What's Next in July 2000. Donations to the comprehensive $1 billion fundraising campaign help support students and faculty, expand academic programs, fund research endeavors and strengthen innovative funds to meet the highest priority needs. The Campaign for UCSD has generated over $800 million to date, but there is nearly $200 million to raise before the campaign concludes in June 2007. The campaign provides a way for alumni, parents and friends to make a lasting contribution to the university and be an integral part of UCSD's next chapter of growth. MORE

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