In the News

“In the News” features a sampling of faculty, staff and administrators who have been quoted in newspaper or magazine articles or have been interviewed on radio or television. To obtain a copy of the clipping packet from which the “In the News” items are collected, contact the Office of News and Media Relations, 713-348-6774.

New York Times
An article featured the discovery of a flaw in Google’s Desktop Search program by Dan Wallach, assistant professor of computer science and in electrical and computer engineering, and two of his students, Seth Fogarty and Seth Nielson. The researchers said that the Google security weakness resulted from the way that Google Desktop was designed to intercept outgoing network connections from the user’s computer.

Paul Dholakia, assistant professor of management at the Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Management, was quoted extensively in an article about the kind of thinking employed by many eBay shoppers.

Forbes
An article discussed the idea that there might be a genetic basis for political attitudes. An article co-authored by John Alford, associate professor of political science, was reported to have chastised the political science profession “for clinging to a view that is now unsustainable, i.e., the view that political attitudes reflect only cultural-environmental factors.”

The Chronicle of Higher Education
An article reported on the steps taken by Melissa Kean, deputy to the president, to ensure that Rice had a satisfactory pool of candidates to choose from in its recent presidential search.

An article reported on the growing use of digital cameras by scholars doing research. Kerry Ward, assistant professor of history, who was reported to use digital cameras in her overseas research on forced migration, said that it is a cheap way to store and copy documents. Ward also noted that some libraries permit digital cameras and some do not. Ward added, “But I think that is going to change. They have bought the technology themselves, so it’s a way for them to generate income.”

The Washington Post
An article about the ease of acquiring the ingredients needed to make chemical weapons described an exercise performed by James Tour, the Chao Professor of Chemistry, professor of mechanical engineering and materials science and of computer science. Tour reportedly was able to acquire from one source, using a single form, all the ingredients needed to make the nerve gas sarin. Tour was quoted extensively.