Dateline archive:
New faculty, budget update, bicycle quiz — 11.14.08
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NEWS
Meet our new faculty for 2008
Dateline profiles this year's 109 new Academic Senate and Cooperative Extension hires. "We're attracting some of the best, bright minds that are available and winning out over other top-notch universities in getting them here," says Bruce White, interim vice provost for Academic Personnel. [ More… ]
UC may see more state cuts
The governor giveth and the governor taketh, $65.5 million to be exact. That is how much Arnold Schwarzenegger is proposing as a midyear cut in the state allocation to UC for 2008-09. Associate Vice Chancellor Kelly Ratliff of the Office of Resource Management and Planning says that UC Davis' share could be 14 percent to 15 percent, or $9.2 million to $9.8 million. [ More… ]
UC president gives retirement plan update
Just as the state and UC budgets have taken a beating in this economic downturn, so too has the UC Retirement Plan, dropping in value more than 28 percent from July 2007 through October 2008. Today, the plan's assets cover about 100 percent of obligations, down from 105 percent funded status on June 30, 2007. In a statement Nov. 10, UC President Mark G. Yudof assured employees that their benefits are secure and that UCRP investments are well diversified. [ More… ]
Analyzing the election: Obama's new rival is Congress
Now that he is president-elect, Barack Obama must start grappling with congressional and left-centrist politics in his own party, say faculty experts. At a recent panel discussion, "2008 Presidential Election: How We Got Here and What We Do Now," three UC Davis scholars weighed in on the challenges that the Obama administration will face and the role that race played in the presidential election. [ More… ]
$4 million grant for plant, animal study in Asia
UC Davis scientists who manage campus biological collections have received a five-year, $4 million grant to study fungi, bacteria, plants, insects and vertebrates on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, which is threatened by the loss of biodiversity in its tropical forests. An international team of collaborators will conduct biodiversity field surveys, screen microbes and plants for applications to human health and energy needs, recommend strategies to conserve endangered species, and develop and encourage conservation efforts. [ More… ]
A conversation with Freeman Dyson: Alien civilizations, gravity, religion
Campus Egghead blogger Andy Fell recently sat down with thinker, physicist and author Freeman Dyson for a wide-ranging interview discussing life on other planets, quantum physics, nuclear weapons, and the relationship of religion and science. Dyson's two-week visit to campus was sponsored by the physics department as part of its Centennial Speaker Series. [ More… ]
Helping those in need: Holiday food and toy drives
With the holidays fast approaching, the UC Davis community is once again being asked for food and toy donations for the less fortunate. Mail Services and the UC Davis Bookstore are collecting for food banks through Nov. 21, while the Coffee House and the Delta Chi fraternity are collecting new and used toys through Dec. 5 for Toys for Tots. [ More… ]
Symphony orchestra celebrates golden jubilee
The UC Davis Symphony Orchestra is celebrating its 50th anniversary with a series of events beginning next week. The gala concert on Nov. 23 at the Mondavi Center is the centerpiece, but a free symposium and two free lectures also are planned, all featuring Berlioz scholar David Cairns. [ More… ]
Open enrollment: Medical plan overview meetings added
The Health Care Facilitator Program announced two additional presentations of its medical plan overview during the last 12 days of open enrollment. All UC Davis employees with health benefits are invited to attend. These are in addition to open enrollment presentations put on by Human Resources, also scheduled during the next two weeks. Open enrollment closes at midnight on Nov. 25. [ More… ]
DIRECTIVES
No new directives were issued this week.
EVENTS
Mexican Film Festival
Monday through Friday, Nov. 17-21, 7 p.m., 1322 Storer Hall
A different film is scheduled each evening, and all have English subtitles. Free and open to the public. Sponsored by the Hemispheric Institute on the Americas as part of International Education Week. [ More… ]
Last farmers market on the Quad this fall
Wednesday, Nov. 19, 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m., East Quad
This is your last chance this fall to buy fresh, local produce at the East Quad Farmers Market. The market will return in the spring quarter. [ More… ]
Campus Community Book Project: 'Haiti's Hope'
Thursday, Nov. 20, 6 p.m., Art Lounge, Memorial Union
Leisa Faulkner, who leads the aid organization Children's Hope, will give a talk on "Haiti's Hope." Faulkner's photographs from her aid missions are on display in three locations on campus: the C.N. Gorman Museum's Hart Hall Atrium, the Mondavi Center's lobby and Studio Theatre, and the Memorial Union's Art Lounge. [ More… ]