http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/ Headlines from the University of California, Berkeley Steve McConnell - steve.mcconnell@berkeley.edu en-US http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/10/22_greenhouse_treaty.shtml UC Berkeley Ph.D. candidate Stacy Jackson argues in Science that policymakers should plan a summit now to look at short- and medium-lived greenhouse pollutants, which range from soot to ozone and methane, and their near term impact on climate. Published: 22 October http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/10/22_bio_energy.shtml A team of 13 prominent scientists and land-use experts has identified an important but fixable error in legal accounting rules for bioenergy that could, if uncorrected, undermine efforts to reduce greenhouse gases by encouraging deforestation. Published: 22 October http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/10/05_meanders.shtml Restoring rivers to their natural state is now hit-and-miss, primarily because scientists don't really know what makes a river meander. A scale model using alfalfa sprouts to represent vegetation now shows that strong banks and fine sediment are key. Published: 05 October http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/09/15_heinz.shtml Two UC Berkeley researchers are being recognized for their environmental achievements with the 15th annual Heinz Awards, announced Sept. 15 by the Heinz Family Foundation. Ashok Gadgil, professor of civil engineering, and Kirk Smith, professor of environmental health sciences, will each receive $100,000 for the strides they have made toward a more sustainable and cleaner environment. Published: 15 September http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/09/14_birds.shtml If the climate is not quite right, birds will up and move rather than stick around and sweat it out, according to a new study led by UC Berkeley biologists. The findings reveal that 48 out of 53 bird species studied in California's Sierra Nevada mountains have adjusted to climate change over the last century by moving to sites with the temperature and precipitation conditions they favored. Published: 14 September http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/07/27_green.shtml UC Berkeley makes The Princeton Review's Green Honor Roll in recognition of the campus's environmentally friendly policies. UC Berkeley was one of only 15 colleges in the country to have earned the top score in a rating, announced July 27, by The Princeton Review, a provider of education services to help students get into college. Published: 27 July http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/07/27_bauer.shtml Lisa Bauer has cast a long shadow as manager of Campus Recycling and Refuse Services at Berkeley for more than a decade. For her early vision — and for rolling up her sleeves for years to make it manifest — Bauer was recently named UC's 2009 Sustainability Champion. Published: 27 July http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/07/09_biodiv.shtml The Census Bureau is good at profiling the U.S. population by sampling small groups of people, but biologists lack a good way to estimate the richness of life in large areas based on small-area studies. Ecologist John Harte has developed a new theory that does a much better job predicting biodiversity in large biomes and could be a boon to conservation biologists. Published: 09 July http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/07/02_greencorridor.shtml Representatives of UC Berkeley and other members of a public-private East Bay consortium designed to solve environmental challenges while creating jobs gathered in Oakland June 26 for the partnership's second annual summit. Published: 02 July http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/06/22_pesticide.shtml UC Berkeley researchers recommend that the U.S. EPA re-evaluate current standards for pesticide exposure in light of a new study finding that children's increased vulnerability to pesticides lasts much longer than expected. Published: 22 June http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/05/26_exoticpests.shtml An exotic pest is ravaging the shade-providing canopy of eastern hemlock forests, and in turn setting the stage for the successful invasion of non-native plants, according to new UC Berkeley research. Published: 26 May http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/05/18_coolinghaze.shtml Global warming may include some periods of local cooling, according to a new UC Berkeley study. Results from satellite and ground-based sensor data show that sweltering summers can, paradoxically, lead to the temporary formation of a cooling haze in the southeastern United States. Published: 18 May http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/05/04_ddt.shtml The current practice of spraying DDT indoors to fight malaria is leading to unprecedented – and insufficiently monitored – levels of exposure to the pesticide, say experts concerned about the risk to human health. Published: 04 May http://www.berkeley.edu/news/berkeleyan/2009/05/01_bees.shtml A research garden near campus is devoted to discovering which common garden plants are attractive to local bee species — the better to ensure their survival. Published: 01 May http://www.berkeley.edu/news/berkeleyan/2009/05/01_botany.shtml Two guys walk into a bar. One says, "Let's do a musical based on that book about plants." Published: 01 May