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11:49 a.m., June 13, 2008--A roundup of recent news items about UD, its faculty, students, staff and alumni.

Bill Hall, marine education specialist with the UD Sea Grant Marine Advisory Service, was featured in a summer 2008 Nature Conservancy Magazine story about horseshoe crabs titled “Jurassic Beach.” Commenting on the lack of general knowledge about the importance of the horseshoe crab, particularly in the biomedical field, Hall said, “Most people have no idea. They put the horseshoe crab right up there with the mosquito in terms of its value to people.”

The University's Vehicle To Grid, or V2G, automobile, which can return electric power to the grid, was featured during a presentation on cars of the future held June 12 in Washington, D.C. The car, a Scion modified by Willett Kempton, associate professor of marine policy, was one of six on display.

Joseph Pika, James R. Soles Professor of Political Science and International Relations, was quoted in a June 12 News Journal story about the late candidacy of Republican Bill Lee, who is running for governor of Delaware. "He got an awful lot of free media coverage out of the lead-up to the Republican convention, the aftermath of the Republican convention, the will-he-or-won't-he and the when-will-he," Pika told the newspaper. "That was the best press the Republicans have had in ages, and it was a complete boon to Lee, because it was all free. So I thought that was nicely done."

Charles Elson, Edgar S. Woolard Jr. Chair and director of the John L. Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance, was quoted in a June 13 Dow Jones Newswires story about the InBev bid for Anheuser-Busch, a June 13 Financial Post story about banking leadership shakeups on Wall Street, a June 11 New York Times story on criticism of an official in the presidential campaign of Democrat Barack Obama, in a June 11 New York Post story on real estate purchases by the clothing retailer Syms, a June 10 BusinessWeek story about the stand of Republican presidential candidate John McCain on shareholders' say on executive pay and in a June 9 Newsweek story on Wal-Mart.

Emmalea Ernest, extension associate with the UD Cooperative Extension Service, was quoted in a June 12 News Journal story on the lima bean, for which she is developing new varieties.

David Plouffe, who attended UD and is now a key figure in the presidential campaign of Democrat Barack Obama, was featured in a story in the June 9 Chicago Tribune and in a June 11 News Journal column by Ron Williams.

Harsh Bais, assistant professor of plant and soil sciences, was cited in a June 10 interview on the National Public Radio Day to Day program, which focused on research by Susan Dudley, an evolutionary plant ecologist at McMaster University in Ontario, Canada. Bais is studying toxic acids from the roots of the invasive wetland plant Phragmites australis that disintegrate the structural protein in the roots of neighboring plants, thus toppling the competition.

Michael Peterson, professor of health, nutrition and exercise sciences, was cited in a June 10 Muskogee (Okla.) Phoenix story about body image among teenage girls. The newspaper drew from a Peterson article in the American Journal of Health Behavior.

Marsha Dickson, chairperson of the Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies, was quoted in a June 7 America.com story about international fair trade apparel issues.

Laurence Kalkstein, retired professor of geography, was quoted in a June 7 Philadelphia Inquirer story about the first heat wave of the summer. “Early season heat waves are the most dangerous,” Kalkstein told the newspaper, because people have not become acclimated to the high temperatures.