Spotlight on…

Our Montoya muralMural closeup: graduates

UC Davis finally has a Malaquias Montoya mural, as part of the Student Community Center, a building dedicated today. … Off campus, the new Hillel House, for Jewish and non-Jewish students alike, includes a cafe, ballroom, meeting rooms and religious spaces. [ More, with slide show… ]

NEWS SUMMARY

More stories at Dateline UC Davis and UC Davis News and Information

Chancellor Katehi addresses joint legislative oversight committee

In her second appearance before an oversight committee, the chancellor presents an update on steps the campus is taking to improve its response to demonstrations and protests. She also addresses the root cause of the protests: "Students are angry and frustrated over repeated deep cuts in funding and rising tuition." [ More… ]

Regents call on lawmakers to re-invest in higher education

Regents, students and other UC supporters spend much of the week in Sacramento, meeting with state lawmakers and asking them to support a multiyear funding plan that would provide UC with modest but predictable increases in funding, including sufficient revenue to avoid a tuition increase in the fall. More from the regents meeting. [ More… ]

UC Davis West Village: The challenges of building a global model

UC Davis West Village overcame funding constraints, delays, regulatory changes, a housing market collapse and other challenges to become the nation's largest planned zero-net energy community, according to a new report on sustainable, low-carbon developments. [ More… ]

Gates foundation grant targets childhood malnutrition

Campus researchers will join an international research effort to develop new ways to diagnose, treat and prevent malnutrition in infants and children around the world. The Breast Milk, Gut Microbiome and Immunity Project is funded by $8.3 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Washington University's School of Medicine in St. Louis will lead the effort; UC Davis will receive $1.1 million of the total. [ More… ]

Cancer vaccine combination therapy shows survival benefit in breast cancer

A vaccine that targets cancer cells in combination with the drug letrozole, a standard hormonal therapy against breast cancer, significantly increased survival when tested in mice, a team of UC Davis investigators has found. The findings offer promise of a new prevention strategy and treatment for the disease, which is the nation's second-leading cause of cancer death in women. [ More… ]

Deforestation: Its global impact on greenhouse gas emissions is complicated

New research from the Institute of Transportation Studies provides a deeper understanding of the complex global impacts of deforestation on greenhouse gas emissions. The study, published May 13 in Nature Climate Change, reports that the volume of greenhouse gas released when a forest is cleared depends on how the trees will be used and in which part of the world the trees are grown. [ More… ]

'Egghead' blog among the best; sandbox video goes viral

Our campuswide research blog, "Egghead," is "an academic paradise," one of the "50 Best Must-Read College Campus Blogs," according to Online Colleges. Click here for a posting about a May 24 talk on the Global Viral Forecasting Network, aimed at forecasting new viruses to keep them from becoming established in humans. And, in a different kind of viral, nearly 1.5 million people have watched a YouTube video of a computer-enhanced sandbox, created by our researchers for informal science education. [ More… ]

News briefs: Comment period extended for Robinson-Edley report

The deadline for public comment on the Robinson-Edley draft report regarding campus protests has been extended to June 8. … Put a password on your smartphone, for security and a nifty highlighter pen (it has an eraser, too!). … Sign-ups are being taken for a Europe Research Funding Workshop scheduled for Monday, June 4. … Students helping students plan second Donor Appreciation Day. … Help Engineers Without Borders turn "Wine Into Water." [ More… ]

DIRECTIVES and ANNOUNCEMENTS

Announcement: Director of athletics candidates named in advance of forums

The four candidates for the position of director of athletics have now been identified, and their CVs posted. Each candidate has been invited to meet with the campus community, in individual forums starting Wednesday, May 23. [ More… ]

EVENTS

Music: Peter, the Wolf and the provost, too

Sunday, May 20, 3 p.m., Jackson Hall, Mondavi Center

The program for the UC Davis Symphony Orchestra's annual Family Concert includes a performance of Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf, with Provost Ralph J. Hexter as the narrator. ... Plus more from the Department of Music: Early Music Ensemble (May 19), Gamelan Sekar Jaya (May 20), Concert Band and Campus Bands (May 23) and the Undergraduate Composers Concert (May 24). [ More… ]

Healthy living: Let's go for a walk, a UC Walk

Wednesday, May 23

Walking: We do it every day on campus, going to and from the parking lot, meetings and lunch, or just for the exercise and pure enjoyment of the campus landscape. Next week we celebrate walking for its health benefits, at the third annual UC Walks. Everyone is invited, employees and retirees, to participate in group walks, receive T-shirts and other free goodies — and, hopefully, commit to walking 30 minutes a day (if you are not doing so already). [ More… ]

Film: Avatar in the arboretum, UC Davis Film Fest at the Varsity

Avatar: Wednesday, May 23, 7:30 p.m., lawn at Lake Spafford, east of Mrak Hall

Film festival: Wednesday and Thursday, May 23-24, Varsity Theatre, 616 Second St., Davis

For your cinematic pleasure, we present some film choices for next week: Avatar, an out-of-this-world movie to be shown in an out-of-the-ordinary place; and the 12th annual festival of student films. [ More… ]

More calendar listings…