UC Berkeley

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Don’t Take Away My Bike (at Berkeley)

Byuclafaculty

UC Berkeley crackdown has bicyclists fuming Nanette Asimov, San Francisco Chronicle, Dec. 13, 2010 UC Berkeley freshman Devin Shoop got a $220 ticket in September. His crime: locking his bicycle to a railing instead of a bike rack… As he tells it, Shoop locked his old mountain bike to a rail outside Cal’s Recreational Sports Facility on Bancroft Way on Sept. 17, as was his habit when the bike rack was full. He made sure his bike wasn’t blocking the path, then ducked into the gym for a few hours. He came out to find a boot on his bike…

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Interesting Profile of a UC-Berkeley Professor Said to be a YouTube Sensation

Byuclafaculty

The San Francisco Chronicle published the story below on Sunday. But the Chronicle keeps certain stories for subscribers only for a couple of days. So here are some excerpts. By way of background, UC-Berkeley puts lectures on YouTube for some classes. The story refers to such a class. One YouTube lecture is embedded below the story excerpts. Marian Diamond – Anatomy Professor a YouTube Hit Debra Levi Holtz, Sunday, December 5, 2010 Each fall, Marian Diamond walks into UC Berkeley’s Wheeler Auditorium holding a round hatbox, a gift from the staff of Lawrence Hall of Science, where she used to…

Not Entirely Pretty Portrait of Fraternity Life at Berkeley in Late 19th/Early 20th Century

Byuclafaculty

Zeta Psi’s history at UC Berkeley unearthed (excerpt) Debra Levi Holtz, San Francisco Chronicle December 6, 2010 Like present-day members, the boys in University of California’s oldest fraternity played poker, drank beer and pulled campus pranks during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. But the brothers of the prestigious Zeta Psi fraternity also dressed impeccably, had live-in servants and preferred hanging out with each other to dating women… The early alumni of the 140-year-old Iota chapter of Zeta Psi at UC Berkeley went on to become politicians, professors and bankers. The roster includes former California Gov. James Budd and…

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Show Me the Money: Public Attitudes Toward Campus Programs After Tuition Hikes

Byuclafaculty

When tuition goes up, questions get asked about where exactly the money is going. Below is an example from our friends at Berkeley: UC Berkeley vows to build museum despite finances (excerpt) Phillip Matier, Andrew Ross, San Francisco Chronicle. November 22, 2010 Even as financially strapped UC Berkeley is preparing to raise tuition 8 percent next fall, it has pledged to spend as much as $20 million in campus funds to help build a $96 million art museum. Just where $20 million will come from, however, remains unclear – with campus spokesman Dan Mogulof saying only that it will depend…

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Boomerang Recruitment: UC-Berkeley Wins Two Back from UT-Austin

Byuclafaculty

Berkeley’s allure tugs faculty couple back from Texas (excerpt) By Matt KrupnickContra Costa TimesPosted: 11/02/2010 12:00:00 AM PDTUpdated: 11/07/2010 10:56:59 PM PST BERKELEY — They sold the house, took their son out of day care, packed up all their belongings and left for a new life at the University of Texas. Then, a year later, Jennifer Johnson-Hanks and William Hanks turned around and came right back to UC Berkeley, a rare boomerang move for professors who leave a campus. “We liked Austin, but it wasn’t home,” said Johnson-Hanks, a demographer and sociologist who was hired at UC Berkeley for her…

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Hip-hop UC professor battles chemical company citing pesticide impact on frogs

Byuclafaculty

An interesting tale appears today in California Watch: Allies of Syngenta, a company that produces a ubiquitous but controversial herbicide, have continued attacks on UC Berkeley Professor Tyrone Hayes, a leading critic of the chemical who has fought the company through outrageous e-mails laced with rap lyrics, original rhymes and raunchy put-downs… …UC Berkeley has defended the professor’s free speech rights. Hayes is preparing to submit a new study co-authored with dozens of scientists around the world that says atrazine is a reproductive toxin. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is planning to hold more hearings on the chemical’s use. And…

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How Green Is My Campus?

Byuclafaculty

Inside Higher Ed points today to something called “College Sustainability Report Card 2011” which offers web “green” grades for various universities and colleges, including the UCs below. The folks behind the ratings tend to downgrade UCs for having foundations with investments that are not specifically green. The foundation trustees, I am sure, would argue that they are pursuing another type of green. Anyway, the ratings with some explanation are at the web addresses below. The folks behind the ratings are at the “Sustainable Endowments Institute.” It describes itself as follows: Founded in 2005, the Institute is a special project of…

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Journal Publishers Not Yearning to Be Free

Byuclafaculty

Inside Higher Ed today reports slow going in a project to change professional journal publishing. The project was announced about a year ago by a consortium of universities including UC-Berkeley. In essence the idea was that journals would be free and open to anyone online. Universities would provide the revenue for reviewing, editing, etc. This approach was thought to be less expensive than library subscriptions to journals. From an article from Sept. 2009 at http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/09/15/open “What the model does long term is change the way universities support journal publishing from having them pay fees to publishers for access to the…

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Students: Don’t Get Sick at UC-Berkeley

Byuclafaculty

The previous post on this blog outlined cutbacks in UC-Berkeley athletics. Apparently, for those student athletes who remain and who are covered by the Berkeley health insurance plan, injuries should be avoided. From a Wall St. Journal story on health plans at various universities: Paula Villescaz, a senior at the University of California at Berkeley, says she never looked closely at the Anthem Blue Cross insurance policy she got through her college. The plan has a $400,000 ceiling, but also has some important limitations, as Ms. Villescaz found out recently. The political-science major had always been healthy—until March, when doctors…

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UC-Berkeley Chancellor Cuts Back on Athletics

Byuclafaculty

UC-Berkeley’s chancellor announced cutbacks yesterday in the athletics program, which has been subsidized by the campus. In doing so, he followed UC-Davis in a similar move (which has brought controversy). Excerpt from the official press release: Chancellor announces new plan for Cal Athletics’ future 28 September 2010 BERKELEY — University of California, Berkeley, Chancellor Robert J. Birgeneau announced today… a comprehensive plan for the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics that will result in a broad-based yet sustainable program that continues to support the campus’s commitment to excellence. At the end of this academic year, baseball, men’s and women’s gymnastics, and women’s…