Alzheimer’s Research Yields Potential Drug Target  Scientists at UC Santa Barbara and several other institutions have found laboratory evidence that a cluster of peptides may be the toxic agent in Alzheimer’s disease. Scientists say the discovery may lead to new drugs for the disease. In an article published this week in Nature Chemistry, the researchers explain the process in which the toxic Amyloid Beta 42 peptides aggregate, and outline the new technology they use to study these peptides. The findings come out of the laboratory of Michael T. Bowers, professor of chemistry and biochemistry at UCSB. 7/1/09 PRESS RELEASE

UCSB's Department of Religious Studies to Offer Three New Languages   Expanding its already extensive course offerings in Middle Eastern and South Asian languages, the UCSB Department of Religious Studies will add classes this fall in Pashto, Persian, and Turkish. Combined with existing courses in Arabic, Hebrew, Hindi, and Punjabi, these new languages will "cover the entire region from Morocco to Kashmir," according to Dwight Reynolds, professor of religious studies and director of the UCSB Center for Middle East Studies. 6/25/09 PRESS RELEASE

Scientists Find That Squid’s Bioluminescence Comes From Eye-Related Genes  Scientists have found that a small Hawaiian squid can hide itself by using an organ with the same genes found in its eye. The squid, commonly called Hawaiian Bobtail squid, has a light organ that is totally separate from the eyes. Using a process called bioluminescence, the squid can light up its underside to match the surrounding light from the sun. The new finding is that this organ is light sensitive and uses some of the same genes as the squid’s eye. Todd Oakley, an evolutionary biologist at UCSB, performed the evolutionary analysis of the genes of the squid. 6/11/09 PRESS RELEASE

Religious Studies Scholar Publishes Volume on Islam  Juan E. Campo, associate professor of religious studies at UC Santa Barbara, has published the "Encyclopedia of Islam" (Facts on File, 2009). It is part of a six-volume set titled "Encyclopedia of World Religions." The series explores the major religions of the world, emphasizing the living faiths and their historical and social backgrounds. 6/11/09 PRESS RELEASE

Researchers Test Nanoparticle to Treat Cardiovascular Disease in Mice  Scientists at UCSB and other researchers have developed a nanoparticle that can attack plaque –– a major cause of cardiovascular disease. The new development is described in a recent issue of the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science. The treatment is promising for the eventual development of therapies for humans with cardiovascular disease, which is blamed for one third of the deaths in the United States each year. 6/5/09 PRESS RELEASE

Number of UCSB Patents, Inventions Increases in 2008  From the atomic force microscope to light-emitting diodes, UC Santa Barbara has cemented its place as a world leader in scientific advancements and inventions. Now, thanks to UCSB’s growing research enterprise, the campus has seen the number of inventions and patents — and the income they generate — rise dramatically over the past three years. All told, UCSB had 611 active inventions in its 2008 portfolio, which also includes 316 active U.S. patents. In fiscal 2008, UCSB produced total utility patent income of $3.88 million. 6/3/09 PRESS RELEASE

UCSB Researchers Describe Breakthrough in the Quantum Control of Light  UCSB researchers have recently demonstrated a breakthrough in the quantum control of photons, the energy quanta of light. This is a significant result in quantum computation, and could eventually have implications in banking, drug design, and other applications. The results are published in the May 28 issue of the journal Nature. 5/29/09 PRESS RELEASE

Scientists Find Microfossils Challenge Prevailing Timeline of Early Life on Earth  New fossil findings discovered by scientists at UC Santa Barbara challenge prevailing theories of early life on Earth, according to an article in the June issue of the journal Nature Geoscience. By analyzing microfossils at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, the authors have challenged the widely held timeline that has been generally assumed to be correct for the widespread die-off of early life on Earth. 5/26/09 PRESS RELEASE

UCSB to Host 2010 Men’s Soccer Championship  The NCAA Division I Men’s Soccer Committee has selected UC Santa Barbara to serve as host for the 2010 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship. The College Cup will take place Dec. 10 and 12, 2010, at Harder Stadium. It marks the first time UCSB will host the event. "This is tremendous news," said Mark Massari, UCSB’s director of athletics. "UCSB, Santa Barbara, and the central coast area is a great choice for celebrating the NCAA Men's College Cup. We are on the national stage." 5/14/09 PRESS RELEASE

UCSB'S San Clemente Housing Project Receives Gold Certification From Green Building Council  UC Santa Barbara's San Clemente Villages graduate student housing complex has been awarded the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) gold-level certification by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The San Clemente project becomes the largest LEED-certified housing facility on any college or university campus in the country, according to officials with the USGBC. San Clemente Villages features four separate apartment buildings with 973 beds in 325 one-, two- and four-bedroom apartments. 5/12/09 PRESS RELEASE

Scientists Map West Coast Areas Most Affected by Humans  Climate change, fishing, and commercial shipping top the list of threats to the ocean off the West Coast of the United States. "Every single spot of the ocean along the West Coast is affected by 10 to 15 different human activities annually," said Ben Halpern, a marine ecologist at UCSB’s National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS). "The results are a wake-up call. We are significantly affecting the oceans." 5/11/09  PRESS RELEASE

Scientists Shed Light on Inner Workings of Human Embryonic Stem Cells  Scientists at UC Santa Barbara have made a significant discovery in understanding the way human embryonic stem cells function. They explain nature's way of controlling whether these cells will renew, or will transform to become part of an ear, a liver, or any other part of the human body. The study is reported in the May 1 issue of the journal Cell. The scientists say the finding bodes well for cancer research, since tumor stem cells are the engines responsible for the growth of tumors. 4/30/09 PRESS RELEASE

Study of Flower Color Shows Evolution in Action  Scientists at UCSB have zeroed in on the genes responsible for changing flower color. In an article published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences, two researchers document their studies of the evolution of columbine flowers in North America. They studied red columbines pollinated by hummingbirds, and white or yellow columbines pollinated by hawkmoths. "What is important in this research is that hawkmoths mostly visit –– and pollinate –– white or pale flowers," said senior author Scott A. Hodges, professor of ecology, evolution and marine biology at UCSB. 6/29/09  PRESS RELEASE

New Book by UCSB History Scholar Examines Wal-Mart as a Business Model  In a new book titled "The Retail Revolution: How Wal-Mart Created a Brave New World of Business" (Metropolitan Books), Nelson Lichtenstein, professor of history at UC Santa Barbara, investigates the rise of the merchandising giant and the business model through which it achieved such immense financial success. "Deploying computer-age technology, Reagan-era politics, and Protestant evangelism, Sam Walton's firm became a byword for cheap goods and low-paid workers, famed for the ruthless efficiency of its global network of stores and factories," said Lichtenstein. "But the revolution has gone further. Sam's protégés have created a new economic order that puts thousands of manufacturers, indeed whole regions, in thrall to a retail royalty." 6/24/09  PRESS RELEASE

Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology Scholar Receives Harold J. Plous Award  Bradley Cardinale, an assistant professor of ecology, evolution, and marine biology, has received the 2009-10 Harold J. Plous Award. One of the university's most prestigious faculty honors, the award is given annually to an assistant professor from the humanities, social sciences, or natural sciences who has shown exceptional achievement in research, teaching, and service to the university. The award was established in 1957 to honor the memory of Harold J. Plous, an assistant professor of economics. 6/15/09  PRESS RELEASE

Gevirtz School Awarded $900,000 Grant to Support Education of Mathematics, Science Teachers  The National Science Foundation has awarded a $900,000 grant to UC Santa Barbara’s Gevirtz School to help support the education of mathematics and science teachers in the Cal Teach program. The funding, being made available as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, will provide $10,000 fellowships for 75 teacher candidates pursuing their master’s degree. 6/11/09
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Graduating Seniors Win Top Awards
Six graduating women will receive cash awards totaling $51,000 from the now-defunct Santa Barbara City Club, whose members established the program 29 years ago to reward top female graduates at UC Santa Barbara for "a job well done." 6/3/2009
Three graduating seniors, two graduate students, and a faculty member have been recognized for their outstanding contributions to undergraduate research at UC Santa Barbara. 6/4/2009
Three remarkable graduating seniors at UC Santa Barbara have been named winners of the university's top awards for their scholastic achievement, their extraordinary service to the university and the community, and their personal courage and persistence. 6/8/2009
Four graduating seniors in the College of Letters and Science at UC Santa Barbara have been selected to receive awards for outstanding academic achievement. 6/9/2009

Renowned Geographer Reginald Golledge Dies in Santa Barbara
Reginald Golledge, 71, an internationally recognized scholar and professor of geography at UC Santa Barbara for more than three decades, died at home on May 29, according to an announcement by the Department of Geography. An informal memorial will be held at 1 p.m. on Saturday, June 6, at the UCSB Faculty Club. Golledge, who began teaching at UCSB in 1977, was a pioneer in the study of behavioral human geography. He was the recipient of numerous national and international awards and accolades, and was named Faculty Research Lecturer for 2009, the highest honor the UCSB faculty bestows on one of its own.
6/3/09  PRESS RELEASE

UCSB Receives NSF Grant for Cloud Computing Research  UC Santa Barbara is one of 14 universities sharing nearly $5 million in grants from the National Science Foundation to participate in the IBM/Google Cloud Computing University Initiative. Cloud computing allows users to log into a Web-based service that hosts the applications they need rather than maintaining software on their own computers. The UCSB group will explore many of today’s data-intensive application domains, including searches on social networks such as Facebook, and protein matching in bioinformatics, all of which require answers to complex queries on highly connected data. 5/21/09  PRESS RELEASE

UCSB Scientists Document Fate of Huge Oil Slicks From Seeps at Coal Oil Point  New research by scientists from UC Santa Barbara and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) has revealed the massive amount of oil in sediments offshore from petroleum seeps near Coal Oil Point in the Santa Barbara Channel. Their research, reported in an article being published in the May 15 issue of Environmental Science & Technology, documents how the oil is released by the seeps, carried to the surface along a meandering plume, and then deposited on the ocean floor in sediments that stretch for miles northwest of Coal Oil Point. 5/13/09
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Voters Give Obama High Marks, According to New Zogby Poll  In his inaugural address, Barack Obama called for "a new era of responsibility." Recently, he pointed to a "confidence gap, when it comes to the American people," and acknowledged the need to "earn their trust." In an interactive survey commissioned by UC Santa Barbara’s Capps Center for the Study of Ethics, Religion, and Public Life, likely voters across the country were asked to rate Obama on his integrity, honesty, fairness, and vision of the country. Over half of the 3,367 respondents gave him a positive job performance rating. The Zogby Poll, conducted from April 28-30, was authored by Capps Center Director Wade Clark Roof and ethics specialist James Lichtman. 5/13/09  PRESS RELEASE

UCSB Political Scientist Elected to National Academy of Education
Lorraine McDonnell, professor of political science at UC Santa Barbara, has been elected to the National Academy of Education. She is the only scholar from UCSB who is currently a member of the prestigious organization. Before joining the faculty at UCSB, she served as a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation where she led research projects on the implementation of state and federal education policies, the political role of teacher unions, and the design of educational accountability systems. 5/11/09  PRESS RELEASE

UCSB Professor Emeritus Elected to National Academy of Sciences
Stanton J. Peale, a professor emeritus renowned for his work in astrophysics at UC Santa Barbara, has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences. Peale was among 72 new members elected to the prestigious academy today in recognition of their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research. 4/28/09  PRESS RELEASE

New UCSB Energy Research Center Slated to Receive $19 Million from Stimulus Act  UC Santa Barbara’s Institute for Energy Efficiency will be home to one of 46 new multimillion-dollar Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRCs) announced this week by the White House. The UCSB EFRC is one of 16 scheduled for funds from President Obama’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The Department of Energy plans to fund the EFRC at a level of $19 million over the five-year initial award period. 4/28/09
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College of Engineering Continues to Climb in National Rankings  US News & World Report has just released its 2010 rankings of America’s Best Graduate Schools, and the news is good for the College of Engineering at UC Santa Barbara. The College as a whole moved up from 19th in the country to 18th (tie), and is the 12th-ranked public graduate engineering school. 4/28/09  PRESS RELEASE