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/2008/06/30_birds.shtml The family relationships among the world's 9,600 bird species have been thrown into question by a genetic comparion of bird DNA. According to UC Berkeley ornithologist Rauri Bowie, the study sheds a whole new light on birds' long evolutionary road from the dinosaurs. Published: 30 June http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/06/24_plants.shtml California's endemic plants - those found no where else in the world - could disappear from their natural ranges as a result of global warming and associated changes in rainfall, according to a new study by UC Berkeley and Duke University researchers. Published: 24 June http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/06/13_bachelet.shtml On a visit to Berkeley and LBNL this week, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet emphasized the value of collaboration between her nation and the state of California as she sought solutions to one of Chile's most pressing challenge: how to provide its own energy. Published: 13 June http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/06/13_climateconference.shtml On Thursday, June 19, some 250 of the world's leading climate and energy researchers, industry representatives and government leaders will convene in Denmark for an international research summit co-sponsored by the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS) at UC Berkeley in partnership with the Copenhagen Climate Council. The conference, organized at the request of the Danish government, aims to identify the critical research and development achievements necessary for a successful transition to a low carbon economy. Published: 13 June http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/06/09_bachelet.shtml Chilean President Michelle Bachelet will speak at the University of California, Berkeley, this Thursday (June 12) at 5 p.m. on the challenges facing her country and the impacts of a new agreement between Chile and the state of California. Published: 09 June http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/06/09_lusi.shtml On May 29, 2006, a mud volano erupted in East Java that to date has inundated five towns and displaced 30,000 people. It shows no signs of stopping. A new study confirms earlier suggestions that the eruption was triggered, not by a distant earthquake two days before, but by oil drilling. Published: 09 June http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/05/22_banfield.shtml In the constant warfare between viruses and their hosts, escalation can be rapid. Looking closely at a small community of microbes collected from acid mine drainage, UC Berkeley researchers have found not only a sophisticated microbial immune system but a simple but effective counterstrategy adopted by viruses. Published: 22 May http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/05/21_qafoodcrisis.shtml A visiting scholar at UC Berkeley's Center for African Studies, Raj Patel shares insights on the global food crisis. Patel authored the newly released book "Stuffed and Starved: The Hidden Battle for the World Food System." Published: 21 May http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/05/06_parrot.shtml A new study led by a UC Berkeley biologist sheds light on the factors influencing the stalled growth of the severely endangered Puerto Rican parrot, and in turn, provides an analytical tool that could help pinpoint the biggest factors hindering the recovery of other endangered species. Published: 06 May http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/05/01_sustainabilityproj.shtml Twenty-three projects aimed at helping people live more sustainably have been granted a total of $2 million through a new program at the University of California, Berkeley, that is funded by the Dow Chemical Co. Foundation. Published: 01 May http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/04/29_hastecenter.shtml Officials will gather today (Tuesday, April 29) to celebrate the University of California, Berkeley's first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-silver certified building - the Haste Street Child Development Center - which also is the state's first freestanding LEED-silver certified child care center. Published: 29 April http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/04/22_sustainsummit.shtml In a half-day meeting, more than 500 participants take stock of progress and challenges, small and large, in the student-fueled movement to green the UC Berkeley campus Published: 22 April http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/04/17_farrell.shtml Alex Farrell, an associate professor in the Energy and Resources Group who worked closely with state government over the past year to chart a course to reduce California's carbon emissions, died earlier this week at his home in San Francisco. He was 46. Published: 17 April http://www.berkeley.edu/news/berkeleyan/2008/04/16_sustainability.shtml Reflecting the growing importance of sustainability on campus, Berkeley's fifth annual summit on the issue is expanding to a half-day, with workshops on everything from greening your own life to the energy frontier far beyond fossil fuels. Published: 16 April http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/04/16_suddenoak.shtml A new UC Berkeley-led study finds that the pathogen responsible for Sudden Oak Death, a disease that has felled millions of oaks and tanoaks along the Pacific Coast, is evolving, suggesting that movement of infected plants between different quarantined regions should be minimized. The study also revealed that the pathogen got its first toehold in California's forests outside a nursery in Santa Cruz and at Mt. Tamalpais in Marin County. Published: 16 April