Vol. 17, No. 11Nov. 13, 1997

A selection of items in the national and local media about the University-its faculty, staff and students:

Middletown, Conn., Choice. September. Book Review. "Seidman, Laurence S. The USA tax; a progressive consumption tax. Seidman (University Of Delaware) believes that the two taxes of the USA (unlimited services allowance) tax proposal-a graduated personal consumption tax and a consumption-type value added tax-ought to replace US federal individual and cooperate income taxes. He argues that this substitution would increase the level of national saving and investment (and hence real economic growth) because household saving and business investment would become deductible."

Laser Focus World, September. Mass spectrometer analyzes fine aerosols. "A laser mass spectrometer for ultrafine particle analysis, developed by Murray Johnston and Anthony Wexler of the University of Delaware (Newark, Del.), performs on-line analysis of individual aerosol particles with diameters between 10 and 150 nm by laser ablation. This is roughly one order of magnitude smaller than existing transportable instruments, says Johnson."

Dallas Morning News, Sept. 1/ Hamilton, Ont., Canada, Spectator, Sept. 13/Orlando, Fla., Sentinel, Sept. 14/Bowling Green, Ky., Daily Park City News, Sept. 17/Buffalo, N.Y., News, Sept. 21. The sparkles of Life Savers lead scientists to a new understanding of a strange phenomenon. From a Knight-Ridder Tribune wire story. "The flashing of light when a material is fractured or deformed is know as triboluminescence, from TRIBO, meaning 'fraction,' and LUMINESCE, meaning 'to emit light.' When triboluminescent material is crunched, crushed, ripped or pulverized, it transforms that jarring mechanical energy into cold, sparking flashes. 'The phenomenon of triboluminescence is of great curiosity,' says Arnold Rheingold, a chemist at the University of Delaware. Triboluminescence is everywhere in the world around us, says Rheingold. Among the materials that flash when fractured are table sugar, adhesive tape and window glass. 'In a weak way, almost everything does,' says Rheingold. He and Linda Sweeting of Towson University in Towson, MD., have identified the internal structure of rice grain-sized triboluminescent crystals."

Des Moines, Iowa, Register, Sept. 5. $700.000 to help fight binge drinking. "The Stepping Up Project, a coalition involving the University of Iowa, Iowa City and Coralville, has won a five-year, $700,000 grant to continue efforts to curb binge drinking by college students and the problems it causes for others. The group is one of six university-community coalitions participating in a national program, 'A Matter of Degree: Reducing High-Risk Drinking Among College Students.'...Other participating coalitions are associated with the University of Vermont, the University of Colorado-Boulder; the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the University of Delaware and Lehigh University of Bethehem, Pa."

Conway, Ark., Log Cabin Democrat, Sept. 7. UCA plan to encourage employees to revitalize Conway neighborhood. "When the University of Delaware decided to begin an incentive program to encourage its faculty and staff to reside in select neighborhoods adjacent to the campus, Dr. Winfred L. Thompson, president of the University of Central Arkansas, thought maybe such a program could be implemented in Conway.... About this time last year, Thompson attended a conference where a University of Delaware official spoke about their plan for an incentive program. One year later, a similar program unofficially dubbed University Park is being undertaken by four agencies in Conway."

Dallas Morning News, Sept 8,/ Johnstown, Pa., Tribune-Democrat, Sept. 10/ Huntsville, Ala., Times, Sept. 15. Silicon chip converts light to electricity. "A chip of silicon, spray-painted with a bit of carbon and germanium, can convert light into electricity, a new study shows. While such a chip could never replace a conventional solar cell, it might pave the way for a computer chip that could respond to light, researchers say. Engineer Paul Berger of the University of Delaware and colleagues recently developed this carbon-germanium chip while looking for a way to speed up the performance of conventional silicon wafers."

Kalamazoo, Mich., Western Herald, Sept. 9. Bits and Bytes. "Applying to college is as easy as a click of a button at the U. of Delaware and in the California State U. System. These schools and more are starting to offer web-based application forms that students can either fill out online or download to send later."

Electric Vehicle Progress, Sept. 15. Can EVs supply electric power as well as consume it? "The answer is yes, according to Willett Kempton, senior policy scientist at the University of Delaware Center for Energy and Environmental Policy. In Kempton's view, electric vehicles can be recharged at night when there is ample off-peak power available. Then, during the day, if they are not in use, they can return power from their batteries to the grid. If large numbers of EVs existed, this is a power 'reservoir' larger than present day utility capacity, says Kempton."

Palatine Bridge, N.Y., Country Folks, Sept. 15. Rotate Kenaf With Soybeans To Break Cycle of Soybean Cyst Nematode. "There was a time when the linen content of paper indicated quality. But soon paper quality for the environmentally conscious may be measured by its kenaf content. Kenaf-based paper is already being used by a select group of University of Delaware professors for business cards and memo pads.... Delaware farmers are happy because kenaf provides an alternative renewable crop that is economically viable, says Dr. Don Tilmon, UD Cooperative Extension farm management specialist. Kenaf, a plant related to cotton and okra, is one of the newest alternative crops in Delaware.... This is good news for Delmarva farmers who often have to contend with spells of droughty weather. It is also an excellent crop to use in rotation with soybeans, says Dr. Richard Taylor, UD extension specialist in agronomy, because it helps break the life cycle of the soybean cyst nematode-a severe pest of the soybean crop on the Delmarva peninsula."

Long Island, N.Y., Newsday, Sept. 18. The Spencers. "The rank of Princess Diana's brother is that of the ninth Earl Spencer. 'There used to be a time, maybe a generation ago, where people like him were sought as decorative letterhead entries for corporate boards,' says Raymond Callahan, a historian at the University of Delaware. 'No major corporation or charitable body or nongovernmental organization felt their governing board was complete unless they had a couple ornamental peers.' No more, Callahan says. Today, hereditary titles are seen by many as archaic relics of an empire that has ceased to exist. As one anti-monarchist said of the monarchy, they're about as logical as a hereditary sports team."

Johnstown, Pa., Tribune-Democrat, Sept. 21. Del. considering shark fishing restrictions. "Faced with plummeting numbers, Delaware is considering placing restrictions on fishing shark in the Delaware Bay, the inland bays and up to three miles off the Atlantic Coast.... Researchers at the University's College of Marine Studies say an estimated 100 million sharks are eaten worldwide every year.... "Probably it's easy picking,' said Bill Hall, a marine education specialist at the University of Delaware's College of Marine Studies in Lewes. Delaware's proposal outlines how anglers must handle a shark once it is caught. Under the proposal, it would be illegal to remove the fins-currently valued at $56 a pound-and throw the dying shark overboard before it is brought to shore."

Philadelphia Daily News, Sept. 22. A killer is loose. "They call it 'the Cell from Hell.' Hungry, Purposeful, Deadly. In its killer phases, it has wiped out more than a billion fish from North Carolina to Delaware and has sickened lab researchers. Lurking quietly in sediments, then morphing into a toxic killer, a single-celled microscopic creature called Pfiesteria is being hunted by biologists this year along the Middle Atlantic coast. 'It's almost science fiction, but it's real,' says Jonathan Sharp, an oceanographer at the University of Delaware. So far, the toxic cell has not been found at the Jersey shore and 'has not been found at all in the Delaware,' says Sharp, head of the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary."

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Sept. 22. Venerable creature imperiled by use as bait: Horseshoe crab, once considered useless, shows its ecological importance. "Fishermen have discovered a market for the crabs as bait for a growing eel fishery, and suddenly one of the ocean's great survivors is floundering. In the Delaware Bay, home of the largest concentration of Atlantic horseshoe crabs, its numbers on some beaches are down 90 percent in five years.... '(They) watched the dinosaurs come and go. The only thing that can stop them is us,' said William R. Hall Jr., of the College of Marine Studies."

BPI Entertainment Newswire, Sept. 23. Architectural Guide Provides a Window. "When Gabrielle M. Lanier and Bernard L. Herman set out to write a guide on architecture in the Mid-Atlantic they had a lot more in mind than a clapboard farmhouse.... Lanier and Herman set out ensure that a reader understands a particular historical style and develops an 'archaeological eye' to see how that style evolved....'everyday architecture' grew out of a study that Lanier and Herman, a professor of art history at the UD, conducted on historical buildings in Delaware in 1992."

Reuter's, Sept. 30. Energy source for homes could be your electric car. "...one research scientist claims a battery-powered car can be used to provide household electricity for everything from the dishwasher to the vacuum. Willett Kempton, a senior energy and environmental policy analyst at the University of Delaware, says a battery-powered car sitting in a garage can pump out enough electricity to run eight homes continuously. 'The U.S. fleet of cars is a large reserve of electricity for utilities to tap into,' said Kempton."

Philadelphia Daily News, Oct. 6. The battle over global warming is heating up. "The heat is on. With steps to combat global warming scheduled for international action later this year, supporters are painting detailed scenarios of the death, floods-and droughts-that rising temperatures might bring to Philadelphia and other cities.... In Philadelphia, heat-related deaths could rise from a current average of 129 to between 250 and 500 death in 2050, said climatologist Laurence S. Kalkstein of the University of Delaware. Most such deaths are due to heart and respiratory problems."

-Compiled by Barbara Garrison