Dateline Rice for June 3, 2015

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

How OPEC hurt big oil
The world’s biggest oil companies have taken a beating since OPEC let prices fall last year in favor of pumping more crude, injecting a note of tension into a long-standing marriage of convenience.  Jim Krane, the Wallace S. Wilson Fellow in Energy Studies at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted.
Wall Street Journal
http://on.wsj.com/1EVr5VQ

Mark Jones, the Joseph D. Jamail Chair in Latin American Studies, professor and chair of political science and fellow in political science at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, comments on Hillary Clinton’s campaign stop in Texas, the passing of fewer abortion bills, the success of border-security operations and Texas’ limited free-market principles.
Clinton dashes for dollars in Republican Texas, ‘an ATM for Democrats’
The Guardian
http://bit.ly/1GkkCLo
In conservative legislature, few abortion bills passed
Huffington Post (This article originally appeared in the Texas Tribune and also appeared on MyHighPlains.com, the Gilmer Mirror, KEYE-TV and BigCountryHomepage.com.)
http://huff.to/1G5ApLT
Did Republicans get everything they wanted concerning border security and immigration?
Texas Public Radio
http://bit.ly/1EVK3vo
Tesla and Wal-Mart learn Texas free-market bravado has limits
Washington Post (This article originally appeared in Bloomberg and also appeared in the Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Business Press.)
http://bit.ly/1GklsI4

Can oxygen therapy cure fibromyalgia?
A proof-of-concept trial led by researchers at Rice University and institutes in Israel finds hyperbaric oxygen therapy can help patients with fibromyalgia. Eshel Ben-Jacob, an adjunct professor of biosciences at Rice and a senior investigator at Rice’s Center for Theoretical Biological Physics, is quoted.
Futurity
http://bit.ly/1AKlHtA
Hyperbaric hope for fibromyalgia sufferers
Memorial Examiner (This article also appeared in Health Canal, Medical Xpress and Science Newsline.)
http://bit.ly/1FTAOjp
Women who suffer from fibromyalgia benefit from hyperbaric oxygen therapy
News Medical
http://bit.ly/1M4HA7h
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy for fibromyalgia: Healing or hype?
EMPR.com (This article also appeared in Monthly Prescribing Reference and Oncology Nurse Advisor.)
http://bit.ly/1RJwqc1

HOUSTON/TEXAS

Study: What’s the best way to teach immigrant kids English?
A study by the Houston Education Research Consortium (HERC), a research partnership between the Houston Independent School District and the Kinder Institute for Urban Research at Rice, found that native Spanish speakers have more success learning English when instructors continue to teach them Spanish as well.  Ruth López Turley, associate professor of sociology and director of the HERC, is quoted. Rice graduate student Sandra Alvear is mentioned.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required. This article appeared in the Houston Chronicle’s “Gray Matters” online magazine.)
http://bit.ly/1RJGVfq

Sugar Land couple look forward to 40th high school reunion
Alumnus Jeff Jackson ’76, a local doctor, and his band “The Fabulous Frigidaires” will perform at the 40th reunion of 1975 Westchester and Stratford high school graduates June 6.
Houston Chronicle
http://bit.ly/1cxAKLA

Open-government advocates cheer bills passed by Legislature
Articles on Senate Bill 308, which makes the records of private university police departments subject to the Texas Public Information Act, mentions Rice.
Houston Chronicle
http://bit.ly/1AKiWsv
EDITORIAL: Open government made some gains in Legislature this session
Beaumont Enterprise
http://bit.ly/1AKhpm6
New campus-carry, police transparency bills to affect security at Baylor, MCC, TSTC
Waco Tribune
http://bit.ly/1AKjGxH
New state laws will boost public’s right to know
Denton Record-Chronicle
http://bit.ly/1KE2Gcv

Happy birthday, Larry McMurtry
Alumnus Larry McMurtry ’60 is celebrating his 79th birthday.
Houston Chronicle
http://bit.ly/1EWcl97
To This May
The Writer’s Almanac
http://tinyurl.com/pbssdto

Texas Music Festival gives area musicians spotlight to shine
Elizabeth Gaines, a graduate student at Rice’s Shepherd School of Music, is profiled.
Here Houston
http://bit.ly/1K9EG2D

Plans for major facelift of I-45 near downtown Houston
TxDOT recently released its proposed plan for the largest freeway construction project Houston has seen in years. Kyle Shelton, postdoctoral research fellow at Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research, is quoted.
ABC13.com
http://abc13.co/1dekCiP

Mascot, musician head CHS class
Burleson Centennial High School valedictorian Bailey Douglas is headed to Rice this fall.
Burleson Star
http://bit.ly/1IcL2w7

OpenStax College, ASM Press partner on microbiology textbook
Rice University-based publisher OpenStax College and the American Society for Microbiology Press announced they are teaming up to produce Microbiology, a new introductory-level textbook due for release in spring 2016 that will be free online and low-cost in print.
Sugar Land Sun
http://bit.ly/1FtSL4J

BROADCAST/WEBCAST

WITI-TV (Milwaukee)
Five recent Rice University graduates have designed a new car-seat accessory that can not only protect infants accidentally left in hot cars but can also notify caregivers and emergency personnel.
http://bit.ly/1GZMpiV
WBNS-TV (Columbus, Ohio)
http://bit.ly/1JkHGKt
WLTX-TV (Columbia, S.C.)
http://bit.ly/1Jq5eMk

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

Training for synthetic biology jobs in the new bioeconomy
An article on jobs in synthetic biology mentions Rice’s doctoral program.
Science
http://bit.ly/1QpqP83

How Houston is re-imagining college success
An article by Terry Grier, superintendent of the Houston Independent School District, mentions that six 2015 graduates from the district’s EMERGE program have been accepted to Rice.
Education Week
http://bit.ly/1FuakT2

Targeting insulin pathways to treat brain tumors
By using computer models and conducting experiments on two different glioblastoma cell types, investigators from Rice have shown how insulin signaling activity relates to brain tumor growth.
Journal of the American Medical Association
http://bit.ly/1K9tvam

Hispanics and women in Texas show largest percentage of reductions in uninsured rates
Hispanics and women in Texas showed the largest percentage of reductions in rates of uninsured since enrollment began in the Affordable Care Act’s Health Insurance Marketplace, according to a new report released today by the Episcopal Health Foundation and Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. Vivian Ho, the James A. Baker III Institute Chair in Health Economics at Rice’s Baker Institute and professor of economics, is quoted. Elena Marks, president and CEO of the Episcopal Health Foundation and a nonresident health policy fellow at the Baker Institute, is interviewed on KUT-FM.
News Medical (This article also appeared in Medical Xpress and Science Newsline.)
http://bit.ly/1GZQTWL
New report: Texas Hispanics, women show largest reductions in rates of uninsured
Health Canal
http://bit.ly/1M4JLaX
KUT-FM (Austin, Texas)
http://bit.ly/1Jq56wC

3-D nanostructure could benefit nanoelectronics and gas storage
Nanoelectronics, composite materials and hydrogen fuel cells are just a few applications a new three-dimensional porous nanostructure could make possible. Researchers from Rice University have made a computer simulation of the material by stacking extremely thin sheets of boron nitride in parallel layers. Rouzbeh Shahsavari, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering, and graduate student Navid Sakhavand are quoted.
AZOnano.com
http://bit.ly/1cxvYgZ

Portable microendoscope could eliminate need for costly biopsies for esophageal cancer patients
In a clinical study of patients in the United States and China, researchers found that a portable, low-cost, battery-powered microendoscope developed by Rice University bioengineers could eventually eliminate the need for costly biopsies for many patients undergoing standard endoscopic screening for esophageal cancer. Rebecca Richards-Kortum, the Stanley C. Moore Professor of Bioengineering, professor of electrical and computer engineering and director of the Institute of Biosciences and Bioengineering and of Rice 360°: Institute for Global Health Technologies, is quoted. Graduate student Timothy Quang and Dongsuk Shin and research assistant Richard Schwarz are mentioned.
News Medical (This article also appeared in the Zimbabwe Star, the Argentina Star, the Business Standard, the Philippine Times, the Nigeria Sun, the Knoxville Times, the Vancouver Desi, Yahoo! India, WebIndia123, the Siasat Daily, Mangalorean.com and DaijiWorld.com.)
http://bit.ly/1Fu9F46
Portable microendoscope could make costly biopsies redundant in esophageal cancer
Delhi Daily News
http://bit.ly/1HKqyb7
Indian-American researcher Dr. Sharmila Anandasabapathy determines microendoscope could eliminate expensive biopsies
American Bazaar
http://bit.ly/1Q6KcIi

Indian-American team at Rice creates imaging system to monitor vital signs
Rice researchers are developing a touch-free system that monitors patients’ vital signs via video while compensating for skin tone, lighting and movement. Graduate student Mayank Kumar is quoted. Ashutosh Sabharwal, professor of electrical and computer engineering, and Ashok Veeraraghavan, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, are mentioned.
Indian Panorama
http://bit.ly/1Ih5Zsr

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

Jack Lowe to receive Methodist Leadership Award
Methodist Health System Foundation has chosen alumnus Jack Lowe Jr. ’62 to receive the 2015 Robert S. Folsom Leadership Award.
Focus Daily News
http://bit.ly/1BKwQp9

SPORTS

Another good – but not great – Rice baseball season in the books
Rice baseball’s season came to an end June 1 with a loss to University of Louisiana at Lafayette 5-2 in the Houston Regional.
Examiner (Similar articles ran in 10 other publications.)
http://exm.nr/1IhfKXJ

Ranking the 10 worst MLB draft busts of the past 10 years
Alumnus Wade Townsend ’05, a former standout Rice Owls pitcher, is profiled.
Bleacher Report
http://ble.ac/1Jq2rmx

Former WNBA star brings maternal attitude to new job at Post
Former assistant basketball coach Taj McWilliams-Franklin is the new head women’s basketball coach at Post University.
Republican-American
http://bit.ly/1ePxA7J

Cypress Ranch Mustangs advance to Region III-6A final
The Cypress Ranch High School baseball team defeated Deer Park High School 1-0 May 29 at Rice University’s Reckling Park to advance to the Region III-6A final this week.
Cypress Creek Mirror
http://bit.ly/1FTt68Y
Deer’s finest season in years ends with defeat to Cy-Ranch
Deer Park Broadcaster
http://bit.ly/1JqglFc