Dateline Rice for Jan. 20, 2016

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

The college where students go on to earn the most money in every state
The Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce released a report on four-year colleges whose students go on to earn the highest salaries after graduating. Rice is highlighted as the top school in Texas.
Business Insider Indonesia (This article is also featured in Business Insider Singapore and Business Insider Malaysia.)
http://bit.ly/1n9S7Yh

Pull very fast and graphene paper gets brittle
Rice scientists have found that the same slip-and-stick mechanism that leads to earthquakes is at work on the molecular level, where it determines the shear plasticity of nanoscale materials. Postdoctoral researcher Chandra Sekhar Tiwary is quoted. Pulickel Ajayan, the Benjamin M. and Mary Greenwood Anderson Professor in Materials Science and NanoEngineering and of chemistry; Robert Vajtai, senior faculty fellow in materials science and nanoengineering; postdoctoral researcher Leonardo Machado; graduate students Soumya Vinod and Sehmus Ozden; and undergraduate students Juny Cho and Preston Shaw are mentioned.
Futurity
http://bit.ly/1T4zHES
Graphene oxide ‘paper’ changes with strain
R&D Mag (This article also appeared in Science Daily, SMT Magazine, Phys.org, Nano Magazine, ScienceCodex, BrightSurf, ScienceNewsline, Materialsgate and e! Science News.)
http://bit.ly/1QmQ5jw
Rice researchers explore how graphene oxide ‘paper’ would handle shear strain
Azo Nano
http://bit.ly/1OwtgHy

HOUSTON/TEXAS

New tool puts accurate DNA analysis in fast lane
Rice scientists have developed a tool to analyze the thermal behavior of DNA and RNA strands. It could speed the design of molecular diagnostics that positively identify disease subtypes to inform optimal treatment. David Zhang, assistant professor of bioengineering, is quoted. Postdoctoral researcher Chunyan Wang and graduate student Jin Bae are mentioned.
TMC News
http://bit.ly/1PhyZ7x
Rice scientists develop new tool to analyze thermal behaviors of DNA and RNA strands
News-Medical
http://bit.ly/1SwLU63
New tool puts gene analysis in fast lane
Web India 123 (Similar articles appeared in 15 other media outlets.)
http://bit.ly/1ZB7CF2

Another private Texas college opts out of ‘campus carry’
St. Edward’s University opted out of the Texas “campus carry” law Tuesday. Rice is mentioned for also opting out of the law.
Houston Chronicle (This article also appeared in My San Antonio.)
http://bit.ly/1Wuivsr

Student blog: Taiwan’s election of rejection
Baker College junior Aaron Huang wrote an op-ed discussing the theme of rejection present in the Jan. 16 election in Taiwan.
Houston Chronicle
http://bit.ly/1ZMrlXH

Group shares rich history, legacy of Bellaire
Rice is mentioned for assisting the Bellaire Historical Society with the digitization of important area newspapers.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required. This article also appeared in My San Antonio.)
http://bit.ly/1nyaoz6
http://bit.ly/1T4DZw7

Battle of the bands, once more
The 15th Annual MLK Battle of the Bands Competition took place at the W.W. Thorne Stadium Jan. 17. A photo from last year’s competition held at Rice Stadium is included in the slideshow.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required.)                                                                 
http://bit.ly/1Phm8Cu

Did University of Houston just lose the GOP primary debate?
In October 2015, it was announced that the University of Houston would host the Republican presidential debate Feb. 26. Since the announcement, the Republican National Committee has severed ties with NBC and the debate location is still undetermined. Rice is suggested as a venue.
Houston Press
http://bit.ly/1nlMWVS

Baylor gives $250,000 award to Rice psychology professor
Baylor University has named Michelle “Mikki” Hebl, professor of psychology and management, the 2016 recipient of the Robert Foster Cherry Award for Great Teaching. Roland Smith, associate provost, adjunct professor of sociology and of education certification, is quoted.
WacoTrib
http://bit.ly/1nlM1F9

Big bucks flowing to Tarrant County legislative races
Mark Jones, the Joseph D. Jamail Chair in Latin American Studies, professor of political science and fellow in political science at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted in articles about fundraising across Texas before the March 1 primary. Jones also discusses Attorney General Ken Paxton’s future in politics.
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
http://bit.ly/1RSVXCR
South Plains, Panhandle legislators stock campaign war chests
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
http://bit.ly/1P5tVRS
Frullo shows big lead in financial contributions, Landtroop hopes to close gap after late start
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
http://bit.ly/1RzRqoi
Texas Attorney General Paxton appeals judge’s decision for criminal case to proceed; Charges ‘cast a cloud’ over political future, political analyst says
SETexasRecord.com
http://bit.ly/1PpFZsP

Rare celestial event underway
For the next month, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn will be visible to the naked eye for the first time in 10 years. Patricia Reiff, professor of physics and astronomy, is quoted. The Rice University Campus Observatory will be open to the public Feb. 6 at 5 a.m.
KTRH-AM
http://bit.ly/1V8yHhu

Low gas prices in Houston
Bill Arnold, professor in the practice of management at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business, is quoted about the effects of lower gas prices.
ABC13.com
http://abc13.co/1nlQZl3

Arts Brookfield presents ‘Exchange’: An installation by Ben Butler
The structure titled “Exchange” by artist Ben Butler is being assembled at the Rice Gallery and will be on display at Heritage Plaza Jan. 20. There will be an opening reception March 31.
CultureMap Houston
http://bit.ly/1RT5F8c

UT System’s expansion into Houston sparks discussion
Texas state Sen. John Whitmire mentioned Rice in a letter to University of Texas (UT) Chancellor William McRaven discussing UT’s presence in Houston.
The Daily Texan
http://bit.ly/1RzScl4

BROADCAST

KTRH-AM
John Diamond, the Edward A. and Hermena Hancock Kelly Fellow in Public Finance at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and an adjunct professor of economics, discusses crony capitalism.
KTRH-AM (Click on the audio button to listen to the broadcast.)
http://bit.ly/1Nkrs0e

Pasadena refinery linked to scandal in Brazil needs a new pollution permit
Bill Arnold, professor in the practice of management at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business, discusses the Petrobras-owned Pasadena Refining System plant.
Texas Standard
http://bit.ly/1RA0Yje

Jan. 15 panel discussion: An evaluation of Barack Obama’s presidency
Richard Stoll, the Albert Thomas Chair in Political Science and scholar at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, participates in a discussion of the successes and failures of Barack Obama’s presidency.
CRI English
http://bit.ly/1S4LG4L

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

Race of world’s tiniest cars set to drive nano-robot revolution
Scientists from around the world will meet in Toulouse, France, in November for the world’s first car race conducted at the nanoscopic level. James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Professor of Chemistry, professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering, is quoted.
Communications of the ACM
http://bit.ly/1Nkh74p

Study: White students see Asian-Americans as more competent than blacks, Latinos
A study conducted by researchers from Rice, Baylor University, Providence College, the University of Southern California and the University of Maryland found that the model minority stereotype still exists on college campuses.
Colorlines
http://bit.ly/1ZMlm5f

Gene editing for Duchenne muscular dystrophy shows promise
Gang Bao, the Foyt Family Professor in Bioengineering and the director of Rice’s Nanomedicine Center for Nucleoprotein Machines, is quoted about the possibility of using gene editing to treat diseases like Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
KERA News
http://bit.ly/1S4n389

Crude Solutions: North America’s energy hubs show there’s more than 1 kind of pipeline.
Findings from Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy’s study titled “The US Crude Oil Export Ban: Implications for Price and Energy Security” are mentioned.
Site Selection
http://bit.ly/1ZMGngk

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

Academics overseas support signatory academics
Kadir Yildirim, research scholar at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, and Shirine Hamadeh, associate professor of art history, are included on a list of academics who have declared their support for the academics being targeted by the Turkish government for signing a petition.
Bianet (This article also appeared in Yuksekova Guncel.)
http://bit.ly/1V8MwN8

Can transit agencies change their reputation through social media?
Andrew Keatts, content editor for Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research, authored an op-ed about transit agencies engaging their critics on social media.
GovTech
http://bit.ly/1nya2Zc

Chapman: The divided State of the Union
Douglas Brinkley, professor of history, is quoted about divisions between the two political parties in America and the relationship between President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden.
Panama City News Herald
http://bit.ly/1n9JqNF

Expertos: ‘Las cuentas petroleras no dan en Venezuela’
Francisco Monaldi, a fellow in Latin American energy policy at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted in an article about the economic collapse that Venezuela is facing.
NotiZulia
http://bit.ly/1T5d57o

How tech incubators work
The Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship’s annual Business Plan Competition is mentioned.
How Stuff Works
http://bit.ly/1n9SC4P

Princeton U. named 6th in national list of hardest-working students
Rice is No. 3 on Niche’s list of universities with the hardest-working students based on academic rigor and workload.
NJ.com
http://bit.ly/1Qe93Xx

Storming heaven: Whitley Strieber, changing images of man and religious engineering
Jeffrey Kripal, the J. Newton Rayzor Professor of Religion, and Whitley Strieber will be releasing “The Super Natural: A New Vision of the Unexplained” next month.
DisInfo
http://bit.ly/1nmvaC6

Drew University kicks off da Camera concert series on Feb. 20
Alumna Abigail Karr ’00 will perform a collection of works by Felix Mendelssohn Feb. 20 as part of the da Camera concert series at Drew University.
New Jersey Hills Media Group
http://bit.ly/1JY9Kox

Fish & Richardson elevates 14 attorneys to principal
Alumnus John Brinkmann ‘00 has been named principal in Fish & Richardson’s Intellectual Property Litigation Group.
Metropolitan Corporate Counsel
http://bit.ly/1n9GTDk

Is Ted Cruz a ‘natural born citizen’?
Sen. Ted Cruz’s mother, alumna Eleanor Darragh ’56, is mentioned.
Fortune
http://for.tn/1RSVLDw
Troxtales: Cruz citizenship talk is unfair
The Express-Star
http://bit.ly/1Wu8go1

SPORTS

No opponent can limit James Kelly’s success
Rice men’s basketball fell to Marshall University 94-90.
Metro News
http://bit.ly/1T4UXKK

Cougars recognize Cory Pflieger
Alumnus Michael “Cory” Pflieger ’09 was recognized by Dickinson County High School for holding the record for most career point for nine years.
The Tennessean
http://tnne.ws/1QmQWRc

Internship on, off the court brings growth to Motzel’s game
Rice is mentioned in a profile of Augustana University student Brandon Motzel.
Motzel played pickup games with Rice players during his internship in Houston.
Quad-City Times
http://bit.ly/1OFMXuq

NEWS RELEASES

OpenStax already saved students $39 million this academic year
Free textbooks from Rice University-based publisher OpenStax are now in use at one-in-five degree-granting U.S. colleges and universities and have already saved college students $39 million in the 2015-16 academic year.
http://news.rice.edu/?p=85745