http://newscenter.berkeley.edu News from the University of California, Berkeley Thu, 24 May 2012 17:52:41 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 http://pmb.berkeley.edu/news/tree-life-technology-visualizes-complex-biodiverse-relationships http://pmb.berkeley.edu/news/tree-life-technology-visualizes-complex-biodiverse-relationships#comments Thu, 24 May 2012 04:29:29 +0000 Sarah Yang http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=31045 UC Berkeley plant biologist Chelsea Specht is part of a unique collaboration to develop software that visualizes enormous amount of data across all of life, allowing scientists to see, at a glance, how organisms are related. The effort, supported by a $2 million grant from the National Science Foundation, will span a wide range of fields, including medicine, public health, agriculture, ecology and genetics. ]]> http://pmb.berkeley.edu/news/tree-life-technology-visualizes-complex-biodiverse-relationships/feed/ 0 http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/article/27730 http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/article/27730#comments Wed, 23 May 2012 22:24:36 +0000 Public Affairs http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=31017 Recycling has allowed UC to divert more than 50 percent of its waste from landfills. But to reach its goal of "zero waste" by 2020, it needs to start composting. Hence the green bins, for organic waste, becoming commonplace at Berkeley and other UC campuses. Dining facilities, residence halls and sports stadiums are some of the first composting sites.]]> http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/article/27730/feed/ 0 http://alumni.berkeley.edu/news/california-magazine/spring-2012-piracy/navigating-the-law http://alumni.berkeley.edu/news/california-magazine/spring-2012-piracy/navigating-the-law#comments Tue, 22 May 2012 18:12:17 +0000 Public Affairs http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=30975 Given our absolute dependence on oceans, which cover two-thirds of Earth's surface, it’s essential that nations work together to govern their use. In an obscure corner of Boalt Hall, the Law of the Sea Institute — directed by a legal historian and an international law prof (and former salvage diver) — produces top-notch maritime-law scholarship. "California Magazine" reports.]]> http://alumni.berkeley.edu/news/california-magazine/spring-2012-piracy/navigating-the-law/feed/ 0 http://news.stanford.edu/news/2012/may/bapvc-solar-grants-051712.html http://news.stanford.edu/news/2012/may/bapvc-solar-grants-051712.html#comments Thu, 17 May 2012 15:52:38 +0000 Sarah Yang http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=30777 UC Berkeley and Stanford today announced $7.5 million in new research awards as part of the Bay Area Photovoltaic Consortium (BAPVC). The two universities received $25 million from the Department of Energy (DOE) in April 2011 to find ways to make solar power more affordable. The DOE's Sunshot Initiative seeks to bring down the cost of solar power to $1 per watt, comparable in price to coal-powered electricity, by 2020. ]]> http://news.stanford.edu/news/2012/may/bapvc-solar-grants-051712.html/feed/ 0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbFOQCDDSTc&feature=youtu.be http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbFOQCDDSTc&feature=youtu.be#comments Tue, 15 May 2012 23:34:01 +0000 Roxanne Makasdjian http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=30682 UC Berkeley and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory scientists use light to convert carbon in tobacco leaves to biofuel.]]> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbFOQCDDSTc&feature=youtu.be/feed/ 0 http://tgif.berkeley.edu/index.php/grants/projects/2012-projects http://tgif.berkeley.edu/index.php/grants/projects/2012-projects#comments Thu, 10 May 2012 22:36:50 +0000 Public Affairs http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=30392 In a milestone year for the Green Initiative Fund, the student-funded TGIF has awarded grants to 22 student sustainability projects and funded 56 student internships. Composting, zero waste and eco-movie showings are among projects that won approval.]]> http://tgif.berkeley.edu/index.php/grants/projects/2012-projects/feed/ 0 http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/09/uc-initiates-legal-action-against-gill-tract-occupiers/ http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/09/uc-initiates-legal-action-against-gill-tract-occupiers/#comments Wed, 09 May 2012 21:25:42 +0000 Public Affairs http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=30312 The University of California filed a lawsuit May 9 against individuals alleged to have participated in the occupation of the university’s Gill Tract property in Albany. In an official statement, the campus administration describes the legal action and provides links to the lawsuit, as well as a proposal to "Occupy the Farm" made earlier this week.]]> http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/09/uc-initiates-legal-action-against-gill-tract-occupiers/feed/ 0 http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/09/floating-sensors-track-delta-water-flow/ http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/09/floating-sensors-track-delta-water-flow/#comments Wed, 09 May 2012 18:55:33 +0000 Sarah Yang http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=28077 A fleet of 100 floating robots took a trip down the Sacramento River on May 9, in a field test organized by UC Berkeley engineers. The devices, equipped with GPS-enabled smartphones, demonstrated the next generation of water-monitoring technology, promising to transform the way government agencies track one of the state's most precious resources. ]]> http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/09/floating-sensors-track-delta-water-flow/feed/ 0 http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/08/versatile-student-and-double-major-chosen-2012-university-medalist/ http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/08/versatile-student-and-double-major-chosen-2012-university-medalist/#comments Tue, 08 May 2012 19:05:09 +0000 Kathleen Maclay http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=29943 Double major Eric Olliff's inquisitive view of the world has helped earn him the 2012 University Medal, UC Berkeley's top prize for graduating seniors.]]> http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/08/versatile-student-and-double-major-chosen-2012-university-medalist/feed/ 0 http://nature.berkeley.edu/blogs/news/2012/05/new_century_new_benches_from_f.php#more http://nature.berkeley.edu/blogs/news/2012/05/new_century_new_benches_from_f.php#more#comments Tue, 08 May 2012 17:00:01 +0000 Sarah Yang http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=29803 Six new 10-foot long redwood benches were delivered and installed in front of Mulford Hall on Monday (May 7) to mark the 100-year anniversary of the UC Berkeley Forestry Club. The logs, donated by Humboldt Redwood Company, were made into benches by the forestry students with help from Scott Stephens, associate professor of wildland fire science, and Tom Klatt, campus environmental projects manager. The new benches replace two older log benches that had become decomposed. ]]> http://nature.berkeley.edu/blogs/news/2012/05/new_century_new_benches_from_f.php#more/feed/ 0 http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/07/trout-threatened-when-water-is-low-in-wine-country/ http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/07/trout-threatened-when-water-is-low-in-wine-country/#comments Mon, 07 May 2012 18:35:11 +0000 Sarah Yang http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=19291 The competition between farmers and fish for precious water in California is intensifying in wine country, suggests a new study by UC Berkeley biologists. The study links higher death rates for threatened juvenile steelhead trout with low water levels in the summer and the acreage of vineyards upstream. ]]> http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/07/trout-threatened-when-water-is-low-in-wine-country/feed/ 0 http://pt.berkeley.edu/news/bike-work-day http://pt.berkeley.edu/news/bike-work-day#comments Mon, 07 May 2012 17:41:10 +0000 Public Affairs http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=29906 Campus bicycling boosters are gearing up for Thursday, which is Bike to Work Day 2012.]]> http://pt.berkeley.edu/news/bike-work-day/feed/ 0 http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/03/scientists-core-into-clear-lake-to-explore-past-climate-change/ http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/03/scientists-core-into-clear-lake-to-explore-past-climate-change/#comments Thu, 03 May 2012 16:15:08 +0000 Robert Sanders http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=23523 One of the oldest lakes in the world, Clear Lake has deep sediments that contain a record of the climate and local plants and animals going back perhaps 500,000 years. UC Berkeley scientists are drilling cores from the sediments to explore this history and fine-tune models for predicting the fate of today's flora and fauna in the face of global warming and pressure from a growing human population.]]> http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/03/scientists-core-into-clear-lake-to-explore-past-climate-change/feed/ 0 http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/01/four-uc-berkeley-scientists-elected-to-national-academy-of-sciences/ http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/01/four-uc-berkeley-scientists-elected-to-national-academy-of-sciences/#comments Tue, 01 May 2012 19:10:47 +0000 Robert Sanders http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=29561 Four University of California, Berkeley, faculty members – physicists John Clarke and Bernard Sadoulet, chemist John Hartwig and ecologist Mary Power – have been elected members or foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences, bringing UC Berkeley's total NAS membership to 141.]]> http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/01/four-uc-berkeley-scientists-elected-to-national-academy-of-sciences/feed/ 0 http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/04/27/uc-berkeley-issues-open-letter-concerning-occupy-the-farm/ http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/04/27/uc-berkeley-issues-open-letter-concerning-occupy-the-farm/#comments Fri, 27 Apr 2012 17:52:05 +0000 Public Affairs http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=29361 In response to recent events at the Gill Tract in Albany, UC Berkeley issued an open letter to the local community on April 27. The letter addresses the site's current use for research purposes, and the planning process the campus has been engaged in with the CIty of Albany and its residents since 2007.]]> http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/04/27/uc-berkeley-issues-open-letter-concerning-occupy-the-farm/feed/ 0 http://www.sfsu.edu/~news/prsrelea/fy12/039.html http://www.sfsu.edu/~news/prsrelea/fy12/039.html#comments Thu, 26 Apr 2012 16:16:05 +0000 Robert Sanders http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=29234 UC Berkeley ecologist Jamie Voyles and SF State professor Vance Vredenburg took blood samples from frogs in the Sierra Nevada to track the spread of the deadly chytrid fungus. They found that the fungus disrupts fluid and electrolyte balance in wild frogs, severely depleting the frogs’ sodium and potassium levels and causing cardiac arrest and death.]]> http://www.sfsu.edu/~news/prsrelea/fy12/039.html/feed/ 0 http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/04/25/new-green-themed-artworks-enliven-berkeley-streets/ http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/04/25/new-green-themed-artworks-enliven-berkeley-streets/#comments Wed, 25 Apr 2012 19:00:07 +0000 Cathy Cockrell http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=28872 Seven beautified utility boxes — all by campus-affiliated artists and all on the theme of "sustainability" — now grace Berkeley streets near the edge of campus. Created by a town-gown partnership, the new works were unveiled during a walking tour on Tuesday.]]> http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/04/25/new-green-themed-artworks-enliven-berkeley-streets/feed/ 0 http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/04/24/cal-energy-corps-interns-prep-for-summer/ http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/04/24/cal-energy-corps-interns-prep-for-summer/#comments Tue, 24 Apr 2012 23:00:00 +0000 Roibín Ó hÉochaidh http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=26711 Some 32 Berkeley undergraduates will spend up to 12 weeks working on sustainability projects in the Bay Area and across nine far-flung countries. ]]> http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/04/24/cal-energy-corps-interns-prep-for-summer/feed/ 0 http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/04/20/sustainability-summit-marks-progress-toward-ever-greener-campus/ http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/04/20/sustainability-summit-marks-progress-toward-ever-greener-campus/#comments Fri, 20 Apr 2012 20:42:29 +0000 Cathy Cockrell http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=27105 At the campus's 9th Sustainability Summit, progress in "greening" the Berkeley campus was everywhere evident — from the sheer number of student projects in the works to the metric tons of greenhouse gases not being emitted thanks to new institution-wide programs.]]> http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/04/20/sustainability-summit-marks-progress-toward-ever-greener-campus/feed/ 0 http://ourenvironment.berkeley.edu/2012/04/our-environment-enews-spring-2012-earth-day/ http://ourenvironment.berkeley.edu/2012/04/our-environment-enews-spring-2012-earth-day/#comments Fri, 20 Apr 2012 18:04:37 +0000 Carol Ness http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/?p=28832 In honor of Earth Day today, UC Berkeley professor Ron Amundson, a soil scientist and chair of the Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, was able to obtain an exclusive interview with our home planet.]]> http://ourenvironment.berkeley.edu/2012/04/our-environment-enews-spring-2012-earth-day/feed/ 0