University System News

USG NEWS:
www.chronicle.augusta.com
http://chronicle.augusta.com/latest-news/2014-12-29/marijuana-oil-trials-about-start-gru
Marijuana oil trials about to start at GRU
By Tom Corwin
Staff Writer
Children with uncontrollable seizures could begin receiving a marijuana oil-derived drug as early as today at Georgia Regents University, and others could start enrolling in a 50-patient trial, a senior GRU official said Monday. But the state will still need to have a way of growing, processing and producing the oil on its own to meet the needs of all of the children and other patients, said a chief legislative proponent for the oil. “It’s very exciting,” said Dr. Michael Diamond, interim senior vice president for research at GRU. The school has the green light to begin a two-patient compassionate access trial of Epidiolex, a drug made from purified cannabidiol oil, one of the main active ingredients in marijuana, he said.

www.investing.businessweek.com
http://investing.businessweek.com/research/markets/news/article.asp?docKey=600-201412240001KRTRIB__BUSNEWS_17018_16694-1
It’s final: CSU foundation buys Ledger-Enquirer building [Columbus Ledger-Enquirer] The sale of the Ledger-Enquirer building to Columbus State University’s nonprofit real-estate entity, Foundation Properties Inc., was completed Tuesday, an executive with the newspaper’s parent company has confirmed. …The Foundation Properties, the entity used to purchase all of the university-related properties in downtown Columbus, paid $3.25 million for the building. The Ledger-Enquirer complex at 17 West 12th Street, at the intersection of 12th and Broadway, had been on the market for several years before Columbus State University decided to expand its presence further in downtown Columbus. CSU is still working on the timeline and other details for the project that will include the newspaper’s structures, said John Lester, CSU’s assistant vice president for university relations.

GOOD NEWS:
www.moodys.com
https://www.moodys.com/research/Moodys-affirms-MCG-Health-Incs-Georgia-Regents-Medical-Center-A2–PR_315788
Rating Action: Moody’s affirms MCG Health Inc.’s (Georgia Regents Medical Center) A2 issuer rating; outlook stable
Affirmation reflects a total of $201M of debt outstanding
New York — Moody’s Investors Service has affirmed MCG Health, Inc.’s (d/b/a Georgia Regents Medical Center, GRMC) A2 issuer rating. The outlook remains stable.
SUMMARY RATING RATIONALE
The affirmation of the A2 issuer rating with a stable outlook reflects our expectations that GRMC will continue to benefit from its strong relationship with Georgia Regents University (GRU, A1 senior most rating) and the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia (Aa2 senior most rating) and favorable market position for high-end services in a broad service area. The rating also incorporates expectations of continued stable, if modest, adjusted operating margins and adequate debt coverage.

www.savannahnow.com
http://savannahnow.com/your-good-news/2014-12-24/gsu-cadet-ranks-fourth-nation
GSU cadet ranks fourth in nation
By Savannah Morning News
United States Army Cadet Command, which oversees all Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) programs nationwide, recently announced the top 10 Cadets on the 2015 Fiscal Year’s national Order of Merit List (OML). …Of the 5,617 Cadets expected to graduate and commission between Fall 2014 and Summer 2015, Georgia Southern University Cadet Matthew Horne ranks fourth nationally.

www.henryherald.com
http://www.henryherald.com/news/2014/dec/23/colleges-agree-to-new-pathway-for-information/
Colleges agree to new pathway for information technology students
From staff reports
GRIFFIN — Officials from Middle Georgia State College in Macon and Southern Crescent Technical College in Griffin have signed an agreement to provide a pathway for Southern Crescent Tech students studying information technology to seamlessly continue their studies and obtain a bachelor’s degree in information technology from Middle Georgia State.

www.metrogazette.com
http://www.metrogazette.com/article/darton-included-military-advanced-educations-top-colleges-universities-2015
Darton Included In Military Advanced Education’s Top Colleges & Universities For 2015
ALBANY, GA – Military Advanced Education (MAE) has awarded Darton State College the designation of a Top School in its 2015 MAE Guide to Colleges & Universities, measuring best practices in military and veteran education.

www.eastcobber.com
http://www.eastcobber.com/kennesaw-state-university-receives-10890-grant-from-the-governors-office-of-highway-safety
Kennesaw State University receives $10,890 grant from the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety
The WellStar College of Health & Human Services’ Center for Health Promotion and Wellness at Kennesaw State University is proud to announce the receipt of a $10,890 grant to participate in the GOHS Georgia Young Adult Program. The Governor’s Office of Highway Safety addresses young adult driver crashes, injuries and fatalities, and partners with colleges and universities throughout the state to implement the Georgia Young Adult Program (GYAP). This program has proven to be successful using strategies such as peer education, providing educational speakers to schools, and encouraging schools to develop creative, innovative techniques to reduce young adult crashes, injuries and fatalities in their communities.

www.accessnorthga.com
http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=283430
LTC named one of fastest-growing community colleges in country
By Ken Stanford Staff
Lanier Technical College has been named one of the country’s fastest-growing community colleges. The rankings from Community College Week are for 2012-2013 and list the colleges in groups according to their enrollment. LTC is in the 2,500-4,999 student category. The report shows that Lanier Tech’s student population increased by 5.6 percent from 2012 (3,389) to 2013 (3,579). Four other two-year schools in Georgia were included in the rankings: Atlanta Metropolitan State College, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, Gwinnett Tech and West Georgia Tech.

USG VALUE:
www.wbtv.com
http://www.wbtv.com/story/27697741/csu-students-help-local-nonprofit-organizations-with-special-projects
CSU students help local nonprofit organizations with special projects
By Courtney Smith
COLUMBUS, GA (WTVM) – Some students at Columbus State University are working on special projects that spotlight and benefit local non-profits around the area. Spotlighted groups include Brown Bag of Columbus, Buffalo Soldiers Club, Boys and Girls Club, and National Federation for the Blind.

RESEARCH:
www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/local/georgia-tech-to-study-immigrant-communities/njZxR/
Georgia Tech to study immigrant communities
By Karen Huppertz – For the AJC
The Norcross City Council voted to approve a Georgia Tech School of City and Regional Planning’s request to conduct an immigrant integration project. The study, titled Planning with Immigrant Communities in Norcross, will examine civic engagement and increased community participation as well as economic development and small business growth within the Hispanic/Latino and Asian communities.The study will evaluate the immigrant community’s needs and strengths from both a residential, and business perspective and report on opportunities for a strategic plan for continued integration of immigrant populations within the city.

www.georgianewsday.com
http://www.georgianewsday.com/news/augusta/309893-gru-researching-liver-cancer-target.html
GRU researching liver cancer target
THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE
A new clue in a centuries-old debate about the role of inflammation in cancer could provide a unique target for deadly liver cancer and potentially other cancers as well, a researcher at Georgia Regents University Cancer Center said. Dr. Anatolij Horuzsko has a $1.6 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to explore the role of triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells 1 or TREM-1 in leading to liver cancer.

www.livescience.com
http://www.livescience.com/49229-illuminating-biology-nigms.html
Using Lights to Illuminate Biology
By Carolyn Beans and Chidinma Okparanta, for the National Institutes of Health
This time of year, lights brighten our homes and add sparkle to our holidays. Year-round, scientists funded by the National Institutes of Health use light to illuminate important biological processes, from the inner workings of cells to the complex activity of the brain. Here’s a look at just a few of the ways new light-based tools have deepened our understanding of living systems and set the stage for future medical advances… Although relatively harmless in most children, RSV can lead to bronchitis and pneumonia in others. Philip Santangelo of the Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University, along with colleagues nationwide, used MTRIPS to gain a closer look at the life cycle of this virus.

www.testtube.com
https://testtube.com/iflscience/watch-a-mass-of-ants-behaving-as-a-liquid/?utm_source=FB&utm_medium=DNews&utm_campaign=CuratedContent
Watch A Mass of Ants Behaving As a Liquid
by Franko Ali
When little insects band together, they can overcome otherwise impossible odds! Ants are a socially dependent insect, relying on their entire colony to create, multiply and survive. By literally sticking together, or mutual adhesion, these small creatures are able to take the form of a larger entity and navigate environments which would otherwise be incredibly treacherous alone. Georgia Tech video.

www.slate.com
http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/new_scientist/2014/12/lovelace_test_of_artificial_intelligence_creativity_better_than_the_turing.html
How Creative Is Your Computer?
The Lovelace test is a better measure of artificial intelligence than the Turing test.
By Sean O’Neill
The Turing test is too easy—creativity should be the benchmark of humanlike intelligence, says Mark Riedl, associate professor at Georgia Tech’s School of Interactive Computing in Atlanta. His work straddles artificial intelligence, virtual worlds, and storytelling. He has developed a new form of the Turing test, called the Lovelace 2.0 test. What are the elements of the Turing test? The Turing test was a thought experiment that suggested if someone can’t tell the difference between a human and a computer when communicating with them using just text chat or something similar, then whatever they’re chatting with must be intelligent. When Alan Turing wrote his seminal paper on the topic in 1950, he wasn’t proposing that the test should actually be run. He was trying to convince people that it might be possible for computers to have humanlike abilities, but he had a hard time defining what intelligence was.

www.noodls.com
http://www.noodls.com/viewNoodl/26393795/the-university-of-georgia/uga-study-finds-possible-alternative-explanation-for-dark-en
UGA study finds possible alternative explanation for dark energy
Athens, Ga. – Dark energy is an unknown form of energy that is proposed to drive the accelerated expansion of the universe. A new study by University of Georgia professor Edward Kipreos suggests that changes in how people think about time dilation-the slowing of time predicted by Albert Einstein-can provide an alternate explanation of dark energy.

www.socialtimes.com
http://socialtimes.com/best-social-media-research-2014_b208793
The Best Social Media Research of 2014
Karen Fratti
While we cover lots of social media research and studies, there’s never a time to cover all social media research and studies. Thankfully, Nieman Lab and Journalist’s Resource have collaborated on a best social media papers of 2014 collection, for you end of year reading pleasure. The best papers of this year cover data journalism, mapping, and watching how online movements and communities interact on the web. Here are some of their picks: …2) “Mapping Twitter Topic Networks: From Polarized Crowds to Community Clusters”: From the Pew Research Internet Project. By Marc A. Smith, Lee Rainie, Ben Schneiderman (University of Maryland) and Itai Himelboim (University of Georgia):
Having analyzed millions of tweets, the researchers conclude that political discussions often show “polarized crowd” characteristics, whereby a liberal and conservative cluster are talking past one another on the same subject, largely relying on different information sources. Of course, you still see old “hub-and-spoke” dynamics, or “broadcast networks,” where mainstream media are still doing the agenda-setting.

www.yahoo.com
https://www.yahoo.com/health/8-daily-habits-that-blast-belly-fat-105544246543.html
8 Daily Habits That Blast Belly Fat
by David Zinczenko
…Can the Canned Goods
What separates a healthy green bean from a not-so healthy one? About three aisles in the grocery store. Canned vegetables are typically loaded with excess salt and “flavor enhancers” like monosodium glutamate (MSG), which studies suggest may increase cholesterol levels and visceral fat accumulation. Just a half cup of canned cut green beans contains 380-390 mg of sodium—that’s more salt than you’ll find in a snack-size bag of Doritos! Go with fresh veggies instead—or you can find some of the cheapest and most nutritious produce just a few aisles along, in the freezer. In fact, a study by the University of Georgia found that amounts of vitamin A, C and folate in frozen vegetables are sometimes even greater than their fresh counterparts.

Editorials/Columns/Opinions:
www.getschooled.blog.ajc.com
http://getschooled.blog.ajc.com/2014/12/27/research-shows-black-students-punished-more-severely-why-dont-schools-believe-it-and-fix-it/
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
Research shows black students punished more severely. Why don’t schools believe it and fix it?
Mike Tafelski is a supervising attorney in the Piedmont Office of Georgia Legal Services Program. He has represented several children in discipline cases in Atlanta’s exurbs. Georgia Legal Services recently compiled discipline statistics from all Georgia school districts and found disturbing inequities in the punishments handed out to black students. Today, Tafelski writes about those findings. Click here to read a New York Times story about one extraordinary metro Atlanta school discipline case. Click here to read a federal report on inequities in school discipline. Despite all the consistent research and data showing black students are punished more severely for even mild transgressions — dress code violations, talking in class — the issue meets with great resistance from posters on this blog. I am not sure why. But the wide gulf between what the data and evidence show and what the public believes may be a reason the discipline disparities persist.

www.getschooled.blog.ajc.com
http://getschooled.blog.ajc.com/2014/12/24/fewer-georgians-going-into-education-do-you-blame-them/
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
Fewer Georgians going into education. Do you blame them?
As an editorial writer, I spent years writing about predatory lending and the resulting subprime mortgage crisis, which often earned me rebukes from readers who argued the blame for subprime loans fell on uninformed borrowers rather than unscrupulous lenders. There was a lot of tolerance toward greedy lenders. Few were ever held accountable for abusive practices, even the Wall Street sharks and volume-hungry mortgage brokers who earned millions on easy credit policies and tempting teaser rates that targeted riskier borrowers.Then, I began writing about education policy and found a far different level of accountability applied to Georgia teachers earning average starting salaries of $30,000 a year.

www.forbes.com
http://www.forbes.com/sites/katinastefanova/2014/12/19/top-3-entreprenuership-lessons-i-learned-from-hedge-fund-billionaire-ray-dalio/
Top 3 Entrepreneurship Lessons From Hedge Fund Billionaire Ray Dalio
Katina Stefanova
Contributor
I spent nine years at Bridgewater Associates in an executive role working closely with Ray Dalio. As a result whenever I meet fellow entrepreneurs at conferences, business meetings, or social events, they are curious to know about Bridgewater Associates and Ray Dalio. I get very poignant questions that you see discussed all over social media and the press: What is it like to work at Bridgewater? Do you agree with Ray’s book “the Principles?” and on and on… Some progressive thinkers in Venture Capital are bringing systematic thinking to assessing, selecting and building start up companies. For example, Merrick Furst founder of Flashpoint at Georgia Tech has developed a systematic methodology for increasing the probability of success of start-up. The model is still being tested with both start-up and corporate innovation programs.

www.hechingerreport.org
http://hechingerreport.org/content/theres-no-thing-f-computer-science_18590/
Why there’s no such thing as an ‘F’ in computer science
By Ayanna Howard and Alison Derbenwick Miller
It’s not clear exactly why kids don’t pursue STEM fields in general, and shy away from computer science in droves. They will give you myriad reasons, among them that the work just isn’t interesting, that the cool kids don’t do it, and fear – fear it’s too hard, fear they’ll be ridiculed as “nerds,” fear of being exposed as an intellectual fraud, or ironically, as the “too smart kid,” fear of failure. Alison Derbenwick Miller is vice president of Oracle Academy. Fear is an awful thing. It’s a four-letter “f” word that holds incredible power – power to keep us from doing what is good, what is right. Power to stop us from taking risks. Power to maintain the status quo, to stop disruption, to inhibit change. Power to stymie innovation, and to limit opportunity.

www.mobile.blogs.wsj.com
http://mobile.blogs.wsj.com/cio/2014/12/19/mit-to-pioneer-science-of-innovation/
MIT to Pioneer Science of Innovation
By Irving Wladawsky-Berger
“Innovation – identified by MIT economist and Nobel laureate Robert Solow as the driver of long-term, sustainable economic growth and prosperity – has been a hallmark of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology since its inception.” Thus starts The MIT Innovation Initiative: Sustaining and Extending a Legacy of Innovation, the preliminary report of a yearlong effort to define the innovation needed to address some of the world’s most challenging problems. Released earlier this month, the report was developed by the MIT Innovation Initiative, launched a year ago by MIT President Rafael Reif. I found the report quite interesting, both because I’ve been closely involved with innovation activities through a great part of my career, and because since 2005 I’ve been affiliated with MIT.

www.indystar.com
http://www.indystar.com/story/opinion/2014/12/18/mitch-daniels-purdue-working-provide-value/20585289/
Mitch Daniels: Purdue working to provide value
The once serene and secure world of higher education has been shaken in recent years by challenges few saw coming. Enrollments have dropped, layoffs have become common, and a few colleges have closed down entirely. There has been a stunning drop, from 75 percent to 44 percent, in Americans saying that “a college degree is very important.” A barrage of unprecedented questions now is asked every day: Are too many young people going to college? Are they learning anything meaningful or useful while there, or just enjoying a four-year party of prolonged adolescence? Can as good an education be delivered more conveniently through the new technologies of the Internet? And loudest of all, the question, “Why does it cost so much?”

www.time.com
http://time.com/3644918/food-weight-loss-2014/
10 Biggest Food and Weight Loss Stories of 2014
Cynthia Sass / Health.com
I can’t believe it’s been a year since I compiled my last round-up, but it’s that time again! As a research junkie, I think this year’s crop of studies in the areas of nutrition and weight management have been particularly fascinating. Here are my top 10 picks for discoveries that have either broadened our knowledge, or shed new light on the best ways to stay nourished and lean. …If there’s one thing my clients love, it’s hearing that a food they enjoy is actually beneficial. Two studies this year offered some good news about java. Animal research from researchers at the University of Georgia concluded that a compound in coffee called CGA allowed mice fed a fatty diet to not only stave off weight gain, but also maintain normal blood sugar levels and healthy livers.

Education:
www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/68608/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=9f736d2c8f594da1899a806ebe20a172&elqCampaignId=415
Diverse Conversations: Obama, Millennials and College Costs
by Matthew Lynch
There has been a lot of buzz lately about President Obama and his recent push to reach out to the Millennial generation, or those Americans currently between the ages of 18 and 34. These 16 years cover a lot of ground in the young adult years, including the cost of and importance of a college education. In town hall meetings across the country, the president has listened to the concerns of Millennials who know the value of a college education but are struggling with a way to afford it. …The younger group of Millennials is taking on more loan debt than their predecessors, and the older group of Millennials is still paying off the debt they acquired and trying to crawl up the economic ladder that is still broken from the recession years. College, it seems, is not as much of a sure thing as these young Americans believed it would be.

www.blogs.wsj.com
http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2014/12/22/white-house-and-census-set-to-collide-over-college-education-data/?KEYWORDS=%22Higher+Education%22
White House and Census Set to Collide Over College Education Data
By JOSH ZUMBRUN
Two government initiatives seeking to understand the value of a college education are about to butt heads. The White House spelled out a plan Friday to rank the nation’s 5,000 colleges and universities, reasoning that students need more information before committing to the hefty expense of higher education. At the same time, and with much less fanfare, the U.S. Census Bureau has proposed ending its efforts to collect data on college majors.

www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/68611/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=9f736d2c8f594da1899a806ebe20a172&elqCampaignId=415
Friends University Plans New Tuition Strategy
by Associated Press
WICHITA, Kan. — Friends University in Wichita is planning a new tuition strategy that it hopes will encourage more students to graduate in four years. The private colleges announced in a news release that it will lock in undergraduate tuition for four years beginning with undergraduates entering the college in the fall of 2015.

www.mobile.nytimes.com

Colleges Reinvent Classes to Keep More Students in Science
By RICHARD PÉREZ-PEÑA
Hundreds of students fill the seats, but the lecture hall stays quiet enough for everyone to hear each cough and crumpling piece of paper. The instructor speaks from a podium for nearly the entire 80 minutes. Most students take notes. Some scan the Internet. A few doze. In a nearby hall, an instructor, Catherine Uvarov, peppers students with questions and presses them to explain and expand on their answers. Every few minutes, she has them solve problems in small groups.

www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/68605/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=9f736d2c8f594da1899a806ebe20a172&elqCampaignId=415
New York Says 13 Businesses Coming to Tax-Free Campuses
by Michael Virtanen, Associated Press
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York officials said Monday that 13 more businesses have agreed to expand to or locate in tax-free zones at colleges and universities across the state while committing to bring new jobs. The 13 expect to invest $11.4 million and create 268 jobs, according to Empire State Development. They will locate in tax-free areas sponsored by Canisius College in Buffalo, Keuka College in the Finger Lakes, the State University at Stony Brook on Long Island, SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, SUNY Ulster in the mid-Hudson Valley and the University at Buffalo. The announcement follows commitments by 43 other businesses to create 2,100 jobs on or near campuses in Buffalo, Ithaca, Brooklyn, Binghamton, Rochester, Albany and Stony Brook in the incentive program begun in 2013. In return for generating jobs, they can operate 10 years without state income, business, corporate and sales taxes; property taxes; and franchise fees.