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2008 Annual Report

In the past year

Minorities head to college

Photo: African-American medical student looking into microscope

School of Education researchers report that many more black and Hispanic students enter college now than entered 30 years ago, but students from these groups still lag well behind white students in earning degrees.

 

Chilean connection

Photo: Chilean President Michele Bachelet with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger

Gov. Schwarzenegger and Chilean President Michelle Bachelet preside June 12 at a UC Davis signing ceremony that renews the decades-old California-Chile partnership in research and education.

 

M.B.A.s design urban oasis

UC Davis M.B.A. students’ design of a solar- and wind-powered urban oasis for Sacramento’s poorest residents wins the 17th annual Bank of America Low-Income Housing Challenge.

 

Vet couple aid Olympics

Photo: Jack Snyder and Sharon Spier with a horse

UC Davis’ husband-and-wife veterinary team, Jack Snyder and Sharon Spier, travel to Hong Kong to coordinate the equine veterinary facility for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games.

 

‘Smart’ contact lenses

“Smart” contact lenses that measure pressure within the eye and dispense medication when needed could be possible, thanks to a new material developed by biomedical engineers at UC Davis.

 

Fragile X discovery

MIND Institute researchers at UC Davis discover chromosomes are shortened over time; the finding may help to understand balance problems, Alzheimer’s-like symptoms and the aging process in general.

 

Bin Laden tapes

Photo: art from a Bin Laden tape

Assistant Professor Flagg Miller translates more than 1,500 audiocassette tapes taken in 2001 from Osama bin Laden’s former residential compound; Miller’s studies lead to new insights into the radical Islamic militant leader’s intellectual development.

 

Climate change alters Tahoe food web

Photo: Lake Tahoe

UC Davis researchers at Lake Tahoe publish the first evidence that climate change alters the makeup of tiny plant communities called algae, which are the foundation of the web of life in freshwater lakes.

 

UC Davis marks Centennial with 100-plus endowed chairs, professorships

UC Davis now boasts more than 100 endowed chairs for distinguished professors, positions funded by donors that provide additional support for research, teaching and public service.

 

Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science opens

Photo: Anheuser-Busch horses at RMI Grand Opening

The new 129,600-square-foot complex of three academic buildings houses the departments of Viticulture and Enology, and Food Science and Technology, and a world-class sensory lab.

 

How red blood cells control blood pressure

Illustration: Blood cells

A newly developed technique sheds light on how red blood cells regulate blood pressure in small blood vessels. A better understanding of blood pressure regulation could help development of treatments for diseases such as cystic fibrosis, pulmonary hypertension, diabetes and cancer.

 

Dalmatian bladder stones

Researchers at the School of Veterinary Medicine identify a gene mutation that causes high levels of uric acid in all Dalmatian dogs and bladder stones in some Dalmatians; the discovery could lead to clues of similar problems in humans.

 

Professor named to Obama team

Cruz Reynoso, professor emeritus of law, is appointed to President-elect Barack Obama’s Justice and Civil Rights Agency Review Team.