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August 2, 1999
The Chinese government crackdown on the Falun Gong movement has put the media spotlight on anthropologist Nancy Chen, who has been interviewed by, among others, the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times Magazine, the Washington Post, the Washington Times, the Baltimore Sun, ICON magazine, the Far Eastern Economic Review, and National Public Radio. Falun Gong is a form of qigong, an ancient Chinese martial art that uses breathing, meditation, and exercise to channel energy. Chen is finishing a book about qigong, which includes forms that are well-known in the West, such as acupuncture and tai chi.
A UCSC project hit the front page of the Inyo County Register recently. The paper featured a story about research high school students are doing on plant responses to climate change in the western United States. The work is being led by research scientist Michael Loik with Karen Holl of environmental studies.
Manuel Pastor of Latin American and Latino studies was quoted in a Los Angeles Times article about the low proportion of workers in L.A. who have job-based insurance. . . . Pastor was also quoted in La Opinion, the Spanish-language newspaper in Los Angeles, regarding Clinton's recent tour of impoverished regions around the country. Pastor predicted that it will be two years before the benefits of the strong economy are enjoyed by the nation's poor.
Charles Dickens, who wrote most of his works in serial form for magazine publication, is back in the periodicals again, thanks to UCSC's Dickens Project The project's 19th annual Dickens Universe made the cover of Metro Santa Cruz and project director John Jordan was featured extensively in the story. The Dickens Universe, by the way, is open to the public and runs August 1-7 on campus.
Psychology's Craig Haney was quoted in the Stockton Record regarding prison overcrowding, endorsing a move by state legislators to fund more parole officers and additional drug-treatment and support programs for parolees and inmates.